


Kiss the Teacher

by nextdoorneighbors



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Book 3: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, F/M, Fluff, Smut
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-11
Updated: 2021-03-11
Packaged: 2021-03-15 04:00:08
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 19
Words: 35,035
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28682190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nextdoorneighbors/pseuds/nextdoorneighbors
Summary: You're the new Potions assistant at Hogwarts, learning the ropes so that you can eventually take over the position from Severus Snape. But you aren't the only new face that year, and the last thing you were expecting was to fall for the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor, Remus Lupin.
Relationships: Remus Lupin & Reader, Remus Lupin/Reader
Comments: 12
Kudos: 112





	1. Chapter 1

It's your first day of school, which is something you should be used to, but this time, you aren't a student.

You're heading to Hogwarts to start your position as the Potions assistant to Severus Snape. All throughout your school career, Potions had been your favorite subject. You just always found it fascinating, so when you heard about a position opening up at Hogwarts a few years after you graduated, you jumped at the chance. Plus, you felt that it would be a safe place to spend the next several months, given the recent escape of Sirius Black from Azkaban.

Snape always seemed to somewhat like you when you were in school due to your passion for Potions, so you were optimistic when heading to your interview. Sure enough, you received a letter the next day that you got the position.

You Apparate to Hogsmeade, in order to walk to Hogwarts grounds, carrying your bag over your shoulder. You feel the nerves begin to set in, knowing from your years as a student that the Hogwarts Express would be arriving very shortly. You're nervous to meet the students; you know of some of them, such as Harry Potter, of course, and a few of the Weasleys, considering you were in Bill Weasley's year in school.

Once in the school, you head straight for the Great Hall, memories flooding back as you walk through the corridors. You hadn't realize just how much you've missed being inside Hogwarts. You gaze around at the tall ceilings and the paintings, reveling in the quiet peace before the students arrive.

You step foot into the Great Hall, where you see a few teachers already seated at the teacher's table - teachers that you had years ago, such as McGonagall, Flitwick, Sprout, and Snape. Seated in the middle, of course, is Dumbledore, who smiles at you as you walk in.

"Miss Y/L/N! Welcome, welcome! Come have a seat - there's one open for you next to Severus," he says, his voice echoing in the empty Hall.

You walk up to the the table, taking the empty seat to Snape's, greeting the rest of the teachers.

"Excellent," McGonagall says from the other side of Snape, "and Remus should be arriving soon."

"Remus?" you question, looking over to Snape, who scowls upon hearing the name. You can't help but wonder what that's all about, while McGonagall answers you:

"Yes, Remus Lupin. He's the new Defense Against the Dark Arts professor for this year." She glances at Snape momentarily, but turns her eyes back to you before continuing: "I do believe that the two of you will get along splendidly."

You nod, keeping that in mind, and within the next fifteen minutes, you're able to put a face to the name.

He walks in, and Dumbledore gives him a similar greeting that he gave you. You let yourself look him up and down, taking in every inch of his appearance. He's tall: definitely over six foot, with a mess of light brown hair, as well as some facial hair, and if you aren't mistaken, you see a bit of gray. That surprises you, because he looks young: probably around thirty. He also looks tired, dark bags under his light eyes. What really takes your attention are the scars on his face, which almost appear to be claw marks. You can't help but wonder what happened to him, but they - as well as the somewhat ragged appearance of his robes - definitely don't take away from how attractive he is.

You hope you get along with him, as McGonagall said you would.

You look over at Snape out of the corner of your eye, who is glaring at Remus with pure hatred in his eyes. Something definitely must have happened in the past between them, but what?

"Remus," McGonagall says as he approaches the table, "Let me introduce you to Miss Y/N Y/L/N. She's new as well, working as Severus's assistant."

Remus smiles at you, stopping at the empty seat on your other side, between you and Flitwick. You smile back, awkwardly, hoping it's not obvious that you're flustered, your heart somersaulting at his smile.

"It's a pleasure to meet you," he says, his voice smooth and gentle, as he lowers himself into the chair, "Miss Y/L/N. It'll be nice not being the only new face this year."

"Please, call me Y/N," you correct him quietly, looking into his light, hazel eyes, "But I agree. I'm beyond nervous, and I'm only an assistant."

Students start flooding into the Hall then, filling the room with the chatter and laughter that you remember so clearly from your years at school.

Remus scans the crowd before turning back to you. "I'm sure you'll be great. But-" he leans over, lowering his voice, and you take his cue to lean over as well, getting a whiff of his extremely pleasant, musky scent. "I knew Severus years ago, and I know how he can be at times, so if you ever need a break, my office will always be open to you."

He pulls away, smiling, and you can't help but giggle. There's your confirmation that he knows Snape, so they must have gone to school together. But, you already enjoy what you've seen of Remus, so what could Snape's problem with him possibly be? Then again, it's Snape. He has a problem with most people.

But, more importantly, is Remus flirting with you? You've never been good at reading men, but you hope that he is.

"I am definitely going to have to take you up on that," you reply, to which he chuckles quietly, as Dumbledore begins his speech to the students about the Sorting Ceremony.

You settle back in your seat, extremely pleased at how things are going so far. You sneak another glance at Snape, his resentment still clear on his face. At some point, you're sure, you'll figure out what exactly happened between them. 

But for now, you think about how a budding friendship with Remus will go while you're the assistant to the man who clearly despises him.

It's going to be an interesting year, that's for sure.


	2. Chapter 2

The next day is the first day of classes, and you're beyond nervous, even though you don't have much to do yet. For now, Snape told you that you're just going to be observing for the most part, occasionally helping students, and helping him grade papers. But still, you know Snape's reputation, so you're determined to make Potions at least a little more enjoyable for the students. You really want them to like you.

The morning goes relatively well after doing your best to ease the terror of the first years due to Snape snapping at them, and soon enough, it's time for the third years, which is Harry Potter's year.

You have heard a lot about the Potter boy over the years, but never from anyone who had gotten close to him. As the two of you are preparing for class, you decide to ask Snape.

"So," you speak up as you walk around the room, setting up the cauldrons so that the kids will have all their supplies ready at their tables. Snape sits at his desk, hunched over some papers. He looks up slowly when you speak, a single eyebrow quirking up, as if to say: _Get on with it_.

"Harry Potter. He's in next, isn't he? What's he like?"

Snape's eyebrows furrow and he looks back down, his curtain of black hair falling over his face, so that you can't read his expression anymore.

" _Potter_ is absolutely nothing special. He is far too arrogant, strutting around here as if he owns the place," he mutters, his tone icy.

You're taken aback by his reaction. Of course, you know that Snape is never too particularly fond of anyone - especially his students - yet, there's something different about his tone when he talks about Harry. You can't help but think back to his reaction to Remus, and while there's no doubt that they have some sort of history, Harry's merely a child. What could he possibly have done?

You drop the subject, finishing setting up in silence, your mind now back to Remus. You'd only seen him this morning on breakfast, where he cheerily wished you good luck for your first day of classes. Maybe you'll take him up on his offer and stop by his office sometime after dinner, where hopefully, you can start getting to know him better past just small talk at meals.

You make your way up to the front of the room, to your seat by the wall, as you hear the door open, the third years beginning to file into the room. You keep your eyes peeled, and sure enough, there he is: Harry Potter, with the lightning bolt-shaped scar on his forehead, nearly covered by his shaggy brown hair. Flanking him are a tall, skinny red-haired boy (who, without a doubt in your mind, is one of the Weasleys - Ron, you think), and a small, bushy-haired girl with her textbooks clutched close to her chest, as if she's worried that someone will try and steal them away.

Your gaze is drawn to a few other students, such as a timid-looking, round-faced boy, who looks almost terrified to be in this class. He looks your direction and you offer him a gentle smile, hoping to ease his nerves a bit. You have a feeling that Snape is especially hard on him.

The last student to make his way through the door is a tall, blonde-haired boy in Slytherin robes, with his arm in a sling. He walks across the classroom, chin up, and settles into a seat next to a Slytherin girl with short, black hair, who immediately turns to him and starts whispering.

Snape begins speaking in his low drawl, briefly introducing you before explaining to the class that they'll be working on a Shrinking Solution.

"Excuse me, Professor," the blonde boy says, loudly, raising his non-injured hand high in the air, "As you can see, I was _severely_ injured, and I'm afraid that I won't be able to do my classwork."

"Yes, I am aware, Mr. Malfoy," Snape sneers, and you immediately know the name. Draco Malfoy. Of course. You watch Snape's eyes scan the room, and they fall on Harry and Ron.

"Mr. Potter and Mr. Weasley will be more than happy to assist you," Snape continues, and judging by the disgust on all three boys' faces, you know that Snape did that just to spite them, which is to be expected of him.

The class dives into their work, and Snape turns and nods at you, so you begin strolling around the room, peering over shoulders into cauldrons and murmuring words of encouragement.

"This is looking excellent," you say as you lean over the bushy-haired girl, "Miss...?"

"Granger," she finishes, smiling over her shoulder at you briefly, "Hermione Granger. And thank you."

_Hermione Granger_. You'll keep that name in mind.

You hear Snape's frustrated voice coming from across the room, so you turn your attention to what's happening over there. He's speaking to the boy you noticed earlier - who Snape is addressing as Longbottom - and he appears even more terrified than he did earlier. You make your way over, hoping you can defuse the situation somehow.

"Is there a problem?" you ask, as politely as possible, gazing at Snape expectantly.

"Mr. Longbottom here is not even trying to make the solution correctly, so I suggested that he do it right as he will be feeding it to his toad afterwards as a test. Do _not_ help him, Miss Y/L/N," he snaps, walking away with a swish of his robe.

You resist the urge to roll your eyes as you turn to the Longbottom boy, who looks like he wants to burst into tears. You offer him a small smile as you lean down to talk to him quietly.

"He's a lot of talk, trust me," you say, "Now, what's your name?"

"Neville," the boy whispers, almost inaudibly.

"Alright, Neville, let's start back at step one..."

You can feel Snape's glare burning into you as you walk him through step-by-step, the two of you producing a nearly perfect potion. You know he's going to tear into you after class, probably saying something about your disobedience, but you could care less. You're here to help teach, not to help terrify children.

Remus is going to get an earful of this later when you visit him, that's for sure. Maybe he has some stories of his own.

Sure enough, after class is dismissed, Snape turns to you, the same glare twisting his features.

"Do you not understand to not do something when I tell you not to do something? Or are you dull?"

"He needed to be helped," you retort, "not threatened, _Severus_. And clearly, I'm not dull, considering with _my_ help, he made it perfectly."

Snape sneers, turning away, clearly not wanting to argue with you right now, and at that, you feel a bit of pride in yourself. Shortly after cleaning up the classroom, you follow him out in silence, to the staffroom, considering the two of you don't have any more classes for today. You're surprised to see as you walk in that there's a class, led by none other than Remus.

Your heart flutters at the sight of him, and it does a full somersault in your chest as he catches your eye, smiling at you. You smile back.

" _Lupin_ ," Snape says, venom dripping from his tone, "What a wonderful surprise."

"Likewise, Severus," Remus replies, matching Snape's sarcasm, but it's masked behind his pleasant tone. You bite down on your lip to hold back your smile.

You eye the wardrobe behind Remus, which is shaking from whatever's inside. You wonder what he has planned for his class.

"Well," Snape says, "considering what happened last period, I feel obligated to warn you of Mr. Longbottom's performance. I would not trust anything to that boy."

Something flashes briefly across Remus's face, but you can't read him.

"I appreciate the concern, Severus, but I'm very sure that we won't have any trouble. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have a class to start."

Snape turns away, the same disgust and anger on his face as yesterday when Remus first arrived. You know now that you _must_ to get to the bottom of whatever this feud is between them.

You smile slightly at Remus and offer him a small wave as you follow Severus out of the room. As you pull the door closed behind you, you hear Remus's voice: "Alright, can anyone guess what's in this wardrobe?"

As you make your way down the hall, you think about the alone time that you're hopefully going to be able to get with Remus later on this evening, and you can't wait to get to know him better.


	3. Chapter 3

Shortly after dinner that evening, you make your way back to Snape's classroom to see if he has anything he'd like you to do, but he shoos you away, which you have absolutely no issue with.

From there, you walk the quiet halls to Remus's classroom. As you approach, you see that the door is wide open, which is a clear offering to any student that they are welcome to see him. You peer in the doorway, knocking softly against the doorframe as you do so. He's seated as his desk, hunched over a book, and looks up at the noise, his face immediately splitting into a grin when he sees you.

"Y/N, come in!" he says, pushing aside his book and a few papers to clear the desk as you walk into the room.

"Hi, Remus," you greet him, lowering yourself into the chair on the opposite side of the desk from him, "How was your first day?"

He leans back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest. You can't help but notice how good he looks: he's dressed simply in a dress shirt and slacks, with the sleeves of his shirt pushed up to his elbows and the top few buttons undone. Scars - similar to the ones on his face - line his arms and neck. Again, you wonder what happened to him.

"It went rather well, I think. When I saw you, earlier, I was showing the third years a Boggart, and I believe they enjoyed it. How was yours, working alongside Severus?"

You grimace slightly, and Remus chuckles at your expression.

"Besides an incident with the third years, I think everything was fine. I don't really have to do much yet, so I'm mostly just trying to get the kids to like me," you admit.

The corner of Remus's mouth quirks up in a crooked smile. "I'm sure they like you. But, do explain about your _incident_."

You giggle at his obvious interest. "Well, you met Neville Longbottom, right? He's a sweet kid, from what I can tell, but Snape was way too hard on him today, and I think he always is. Neville seems terrified of him."

Remus nods thoughtfully. "He was Neville's Boggart."

Your mouth drops at that, and you immediately feel a surge of anger towards Snape and a protective instinct over Neville. It's not fair that he should be that terrified of a professor of his.

" _Merlin_ ," you mutter, "but anyway, Snape blew up on Neville in class, threatening him and saying that he wasn't trying - which he obviously was - and that he'd be testing his potion out on his pet toad at the end of class. And _then_ , he had the audacity to tell me not to help him! Which, obviously, I didn't listen."

Remus shakes his head, but smiles a little. "First day, and you're already not listening to him? I mean, not that I blame you..."

"I won't be surprised if I get fired by the end of this term," you admit, leaning back in your seat and crossing one leg over the other. You can't help but notice Remus's eyes following your movement. "But just because I'm just his assistant doesn't mean I'm going to tolerate him treating the kids like that."

"Well," Remus replies, a teasing tone in his voice, "if he does let you go, I could always use an assistant myself."

You laugh, hoping that your face isn't giving away how flustered that comment makes you. You decide to flirt back, and say, "Trust me, I'd _much_ rather spend all day with you instead."

He smiles and chuckles at that, gazing at you and giving you a quick once-over. Your heart flutters a bit as you watch him look you over.

"If you don't mind me asking, why _did_ you become his assistant?" he asks, meeting your eyes again.

Your fingers fiddle with the hem of your skirt. "I adore the subject. I know a lot of people hate it, but I've always found it fascinating, and because of that, Snape and I always got along somewhat when he was teaching me. Even if he is a bit insufferable at times, I think it's going to be worth it when I get to teach the subject myself someday, because that's all I've always wanted to do. I love the subject, and I love kids."

Remus nods, his eyes searching your face. "That's very admirable."

You smile softly at him, feeling your cheeks heat up. "Thank you. What about you? What got you into this position?"

His face drops ever so slightly, and you feel yourself panic a bit. Did you say something wrong?

"Dumbledore sought me out, after the incident with last year's Dark Arts professor, which I'm sure you heard about." Oh, yes, you had heard all about Gilderoy Lockhart being a phony. "That, and apparently nobody else wanted to take the job, with Sirius Black being out on the loose."

There's the slightest, barely noticeable change in his expression and voice when he says Sirius Black's name. You wonder why that is. But then again, maybe you just imagined it.

"That makes sense, I suppose. Personally, I feel safest here, even with those bloody dementors everywhere," you say.

He nods in agreement. "Trust me, I know. I had a run-in with one on the train on the way here yesterday. I reckon it was just making sure that Black hadn't snuck on, but it gave Harry, Ron, and Hermione quite the scare."

"You took the train?" you question. You haven't known of a professor to ever take the Hogwarts Express before - most reside close enough to walk, and others just Apparate as close as possible, as you had done.

He shrugs, leaning forward and resting his forearms on the desk. "I would have Apparated over to Hogsmeade, but I recently fell ill and didn't have the strength to do so."

"Oh, I'm sorry," you say, but he waves you off.

"It's nothing to be sorry about. I have been rather prone to illness my entire life, so at times I have to take a few days off to recover. But it's nothing serious. Don't you worry about me." He smiles lightly, but you feel like there's something he's leaving unsaid. For now, though, you decide not to push it.

"Well, if you ever need anything, don't be afraid to ask," you offer, quietly, "I know a few potions that can help, depending on your symptoms."

He shifts in his seat, leaning back again and crossing his legs. He folds his hands in his lap, his long fingers intertwining with each other.

"I appreciate that, Y/N, but I'll be okay."

The two of you make small talk for a little while after that, and while you wish you could stay longer, you know you have to go for the night. When you tell Remus this, you swear that you see a flash of disappointment on his face. He's really quite good at hiding his emotions, and it drives you absolutely insane, because you feel like you can't read him.

He pushes himself out of his chair, walking you over to the door. You stop at the door, turning to face him to say goodnight, and you realize just how close you are to him. Your hand moves, slightly, and bumps his, your fingertips brushing lightly against his. You let your gaze drop to his lips momentarily before meeting his eyes again.

Remus looks down at you, his gaze gentle.

"Have a good night, Y/N," he says softly, stepping back, much to your dismay. "I enjoyed talking with you tonight. I would tell you that I'd stop by to visit you sometime, but I don't think Severus would enjoy that all too much."

You smile at that, and while he returns it, you spot a dimple on his right cheek that you hadn't noticed before.

"I have to agree. I enjoyed talking with you, too, Remus. Hopefully we can do this again?"

"Absolutely. Any time."

"Good night, Remus." You step backwards a few steps before turning around to walk out the door. You glance over your shoulder, and he's watching you, a small smile on his face and a distant look in his eyes.

"Good night, Y/N," he replies, and with that, you make your way down the now dark hallway to your sleeping quarters, the image of his smile burned in your mind.


	4. Chapter 4

The next month or so of school flies by, between the increasing workload of your job, dealing with Snape's constant bad attitude, visits with Remus after hours, and being in the middle of their rivalry. Unfortunately, you haven't quite yet found the opportunity to make a move on Remus, but you definitely revel from every brush of your hand against his and all the shared smiles.

Something you've noticed lately is Remus's absences. He did tell you that he falls ill quite often, and you saw that firsthand both in September and earlier this month, in October. Both times he was gone for a full day, and returned looking very pale and sickly. You stopped by his office both times that he was missing, but it was empty, and you couldn't find him anywhere, not even in the hospital wing.

There was that, plus the fact that he won't tell you any details about his condition, or let you make him any potions to help ease whatever illness he suffers from. Whatever it is, you're determined to get to the bottom of it.

Today, though, is Halloween, which means that it's the first Hogsmeade trip of the year. You smile as you watch the students pass, wrapped up in heavy jackets, whispering excitedly to each other as they form their groups. You remember going to Hogsmeade yourself as a student, when you would put aside just the right amount of money to buy treats at Honeydukes, or, once you got older, when you would wait to see if anyone would ask you to go with them that weekend.

As soon as the students leave, you decide to take advantage of the quiet castle. You stroll the corridors, the only noise coming from your footsteps, gazing up and around at the portraits. You miss being a student at times, with hardly any cares in the world besides your essays that you had left until the last minute. And there were plenty of those.

You stop by Remus's room, but he's busy with Harry, so you leave them be and continue to roam around by yourself. You feel bad that Harry was left behind, but you're glad at he has Remus to keep him company, although you _do_ wish that you were the one who was being kept company by Remus.

You eventually make your way to the library, carefully choosing a book before settling in to read. You're not sure how much time has passed, but you're about a quarter of the way through the book when you hear quiet footsteps approaching. You glance up, somewhat surprised to see Harry, who looks rather stressed.

"Hi, Harry," you greet him softly, closing your book and setting it down next to you, "What can I do for you?"

"Do you think that Snape would ever attempt to poison Lupin?" he blurts, running his fingers through his unruly mess of hair while avoiding your eyes.

You take a moment to process his question. Where the hell would he get such an idea?

When you don't answer, he continues: "I was in with Lupin, which you know, and Snape stopped by with some sort of potion. He gave it to him, and Lupin said it helps with his health problems, but is that true? Snape hates Lupin, doesn't he? Why would he ever help him?"

"Um," you begin, clearing your throat as you take in all of that information. He makes a good point, actually, but you're not going to tell him that and fuel his concerns. Why _would_ Snape be helping Remus, and _especially_ after you offered Remus help yourself? Does he not trust you, or your abilities? Your heart sinks a little at the thought, but you mask that feeling from Harry, as well.

"Harry, I-I'm sure it wasn't poisoned. I do agree that Snape is not very fond of, um, Professor Lupin, but maybe Dumbledore asked him to help or something," you suggest, hoping that you sound convincing.

Harry just looks at you, and you know that you really didn't help anything and that he's still convinced that Remus has been poisoned. You push yourself up out of your seat, motioning for Harry to walk with you out of the library.

"How about I go check on him," you say as the two of you walk the halls, "and make sure he's okay? Plus, I do believe that your friends will be getting back from Hogsmeade soon. Try not to stress yourself out too much, alright?"

Harry shoves his hands in the pocket of his hoodie, looking down at his feet. "Alright," he mutters.

You exchange goodbyes before parting ways, you heading in the direction of Remus's classroom. Once you get there, you knock quietly on the opened door to announce your entrance. Remus is standing with his back towards you, in front of a tank holding what you recognize to be a grindylow, but he turns to look over his shoulder upon hearing you.

"Y/N! Come on in," he greets you with his usual smile. You eye a goblet sitting on his desk as he speaks, and once you walk closer, you realize that it's empty. You wished you could have caught him while drinking it, maybe, to see if you could get a glimpse of what Snape had made him.

"I'm sorry about turning you away earlier. Harry wasn't allowed to go to Hogsmeade, and I know he was a bit disappointed about it, so I was showing him my grindylow. Interesting little creatures, don't you think?" he muses, looking back over at the tank.

"Oh, it's perfectly okay, Remus," you assure him, joining him at the tank and standing by his side. Your arm brushes against his. "I saw Harry myself a few moments ago. He, um, had a rather interesting concern."

"Oh?" Remus looks down at you, his eyebrows raised in curiosity.

You gaze up at him, watching a smile play on his lips before meeting his eyes. You feel your cheeks warming at the intense eye contact and being so close to him, so you turn away, looking back to the grindylow as it pokes the glass of the tank with its long fingers.

"He seemed worried that Snape is trying to poison you."

Remus lets out a short laugh. You look back over at him and you can't help but smile, watching him as he walks over to his desk. He smiles to himself, looking down at the empty goblet and tracing a single finger along the rim in thought.

"I can't say I didn't suspect that that was what Harry was thinking. What did you tell him?" Remus asks.

"I told him that I'm sure Snape, no matter how much he seems to dislike you, would never attempt murder, but either way, that I would check on you and make sure you're alive. And here you are," you explain, smiling and walking over. You sit on the edge of his desk, a few inches away from him. Remus chuckles, and you decide to continue.

"If you, um, don't mind me asking, why _does_ Snape dislike you so much?"

 _And why would you let him help you, but not me?_ you think.

Remus's smile fades, and he looks back down at the goblet, seemingly avoiding your eyes.

"Let's just say that we've always had our differences."

That's most certainly not the answer you were hoping for, and hardly an answer at all, but you don't push it. Not now, at least. But you can't help but wonder what he's hiding, and why, especially now that you consider him a friend. Does he not think the same of you?

"You really don't need to worry, Y/N," Remus says, looking up to meet your eyes again, "Okay?"

"Yeah," you murmur, dropping your gaze and sliding off the edge of his desk, preparing yourself to leave. If only he would open up to you, if only he would _trust_ you-

"I have to get going. Make sure Snape doesn't need anything from me before the feast tonight," you say, turning away and making your way towards the door.

"Alright. Uh, I'll see you then, Y/N?"

You glance over your shoulder, offering Remus a small smile. Still, you can't read his expression, and it drives you mad.

"See you then, Remus."


	5. Chapter 5

You kill time in Snape's classroom until the start of the Halloween feast. You decide to get ahead on grading papers, so you sit down at your small, makeshift desk in Snape's office and get to work while he works on who knows what in the other room. The silence isn't a bad thing: after all, you aren't very much in the mood for talking right now.

Though, you must admit, half of you wants to confront Snape on what potion he made for Remus, and what Remus's illness could possibly be, but the other half of you is saying not to encroach on Remus's privacy like that. You want Remus to come clean on his own behalf. But the desire to know what he's hiding is incredibly strong...

"Miss Y/L/N."

You jump at Snape's voice, nearly knocking over your bottle of ink. You set down your quill and look up at him as he stands in the doorway, his eyes narrowed slightly as he gazes at you.

"Have you gotten _any_ work done in here, or have you been merely staring at that essay for the last hour?"

You clear your throat as you shift uncomfortably in your chair. It is true that you had let your thoughts get the better of you, but you had gotten _some_ work done. You point to a stack of parchment, which is considerably smaller than the pile you have yet to grade.

"I got all of these graded, sir, so far." When he raises an eyebrow at you, you continue: "They'll all be finished by Monday, I promise."

"I'm sure they will," he drawls, turning away, his dark robes swishing as he does so, "but it's time for the feast, so come along."

You follow him wordlessly out, and the two of you walk in silence to the Great Hall. You take your usual seat next to Remus, who's already seated and talking excitedly with Flitwick. He turns to offer you a smile of greeting before turning back to his conversation. Snape begins a quiet conversation with McGonagall, so you're left to eat quietly, gazing around at the students and decorations.

After a few minutes, you hear your name, so you turn towards Remus.

"Did I do something earlier?" he asks, quietly, his voice barely audible above the chatter of the students. "You seemed off when you left. If I did anything wrong, I apologize-"

"No, no, Remus," you interrupt, just as quietly, " _I_ apologize for being a bit cold, I just..." You trail off, not sure exactly what to say.

"Go on," Remus encourages, leaning closer.

You purse your lips as you look him over, deciding what to say.

"I was, um, a bit... thrown off, I suppose, after my talk with Harry..." You lean closer as well, lowering your voice even more so that Snape doesn't hear as you say, "I was under the impression that, um, you were refusing help with your, uh, condition after we spoke about it, so after I heard that Severus is helping you..."

You had been avoiding eye contact with him, and so after you finish, you look up at him. You're surprised to see that he has a sort of deer-in-headlights look on his face.

"What?" you prompt him.

He simply shakes his head, glancing past you for a second, undoubtedly at Snape. That irritates you - what secret could they possibly be sharing that you're being kept in the dark from?

"It's... it's really a difficult potion, and-"

"So you doubt my abilities?" you retort.

Remus sets his jaw, and it's the first time that you've ever seen him look cross, especially towards you. You can tell that he's trying to maintain his composure regardless.

"That's not it at all, Y/N," he says, "Severus and Dumbledore had already made an arrangement upon my arrival, and it's being handled perfectly well. I promise you, you don't need to be concerned-"

"Then why can't you just _tell_ me?" you say, your exasperation clear in your voice, "I feel like I know absolutely nothing about you, and of course I'm going to be concerned about you, Remus, because we're friends, are we not? Why can you not just let me in?"

Remus simply stares at you for a moment, his hazel eyes dark, before turning away. He pushes his food around his plate, and you watch him, frustrated and hurt, before he finally responds with one of his irritatingly cryptic answers:

"It's not that easy."

"You're right," you snap back immediately, "it's _not_ that easy when you never give me a real answer about _anything_!"

He ignores you, and you decide to drop it, but your cheeks are flushed and your heart is pounding. You're angry, at him and at yourself for thinking you could get through to him.

The rest of the feast passes painstakingly slowly, as you watch the students smiling and laughing and having fun, no doubt talking of their earlier trip to Hogsmeade and perhaps plans for later in the evening. After all, back in your days as a student, you went to some incredible Halloween parties. But now, all you want to do is go hide in your room and curl up with a book by the fireplace.

Once the feast is over, the students leave first to head back to their common rooms. Remus pushes himself up out of his seat practically the minute they're gone, and your heart aches as you watch him walk away. A few other teachers follow his lead. Snape leaves, too, and once he's gone, McGonagall leans over his empty seat towards you.

"What ever is the matter, dear?" she asks, and the gentle, motherly tone of her voice eases some of your irritation. You sigh deeply before turning to face her as you stand up.

"It's nothing, Minerva," you say, forcing a smile that you know that she sees right through, "Nothing but a headache."

She stands up, too, walking close to you and leaning over to speak in your ear.

"Any chance this headache's name is Remus Lupin?"

You can't help but laugh at that, and she pulls back with a warm smile on her face.

"Come see me tomorrow afternoon, and we'll chat over some tea and biscuits. You look like you need it."

Your heart swells, thankful for her, as always.

"I think you're right. Thank you, really," you say as the two of you make your way out of the Great Hall, side by side. You hear chaos coming from the direction of Gryffindor Tower, so, after exchanging a look, you and McGonagall make your way in that direction. Snape, Dumbledore, and Remus are already there, along with what appears to be the entire Gryffindor house. You look up the stairs, towards the painting of the Fat Lady, and your eyes widen in horror at what you see: the Fat Lady is missing from her painting, and rightfully so, because there are slashes in the painting, as if someone got angry and tried to tear it apart.

Dumbledore calls to the Gryffindors to head back to the Great Hall, and as they pass you, whispering, you and McGonagall approach the other teachers.

"Albus, what on Earth is going on?" McGonagall says.

You look up at Remus, to see that he's already looking at you. Once the two of you make eye contact, he looks away, and your heart sinks. Even though you're frustrated with him for keeping you at arms' length, you didn't want him to _fully_ shut you out. It hurts even worse.

You then glance at Snape, who was clearly watching the exchange out of the corner of his eye. He looks away, too, once you catch him looking.

"Apparently," Dumbledore says, starting towards the Great Hall, "Sirius Black was in the castle tonight and tried to break into the Gryffindor common room."

" _Sirius Black_?" you can't help but exclaim, "What about the dementors? What use are they then if they just let him slip by?"

"She makes an awfully good point, Albus," Snape says, and you can't help but be surprised that he agreed with you on something. But you can't help but be scared, as well. You thought you'd be safe here, after all, with the dementors guarding the castle. And who knows if Sirius Black is still lurking somewhere? You swallow, hard, trying to disguise your fear. You can't let the kids know - or your colleagues, for that matter - of your concerns.

You follow them quietly back to the Great Hall, where, once the other houses and teachers arrive, Dumbledore lays out the instructions for the evening. He announces that all staff will go search the castle while the students stay in the Great Hall, which, upon hearing, your blood runs cold. Black killed more than ten people with one spell, so you'll be a goner if you cross paths with him.

Once Dumbledore is done giving instructions, you follow him, along with the rest of the staff, out into the corridor. He stops, and starts directing people where to patrol. Eventually, his eyes land on you and then flit to Remus.

"You two," he says, and you swear that you see a mischievous glint in his eye, "Fourth floor."

If Dumbledore is trying to play matchmaker, you hope he knows that now is the worst possible time.

You walk with Remus in silence, and you wish he would say something, because you're too stubborn to crack and say something first. You arrive to the fourth floor, which is where the library is located. Besides that, and a balcony, the fourth floor isn't very exciting, otherwise. The least Dumbledore could have done is sent you to a more interesting floor, considering he sent you off to search for a mass murderer with the man you're currently feuding with.

After several unbearable moments of silence and avoiding each other's gazes, you give in, beginning to speak, but much to your surprise, Remus apparently had the same idea.

"So what do you-"

"I'm a werewolf."

You stop with your mouth open, turning to look at him, and he hesitantly returns your gaze. There's a hard, blazing look in his eyes, and suddenly, everything clicks. The scars, the potion - it must have been Wolfsbane, which is why he didn't tell you what he needed, because it would have gave it away immediately. How could you have been so _stupid_? And the monthly disappearances, coming back looking pale and weak... If you only would have checked the lunar charts, you would have figured it out right away.

"Remus..." You're at a loss for words.

He, on the other hand, looks ashamed. Defeated. You want to reach out, to take his hand or offer some sort of comfort, and at the same time, you want to ask a million questions. What happened? How long? Who else knows? Snape and Dumbledore, obviously...

Is that why Snape hates him? Simply because of what he is, despite him being a good, kind-hearted man?

"You don't have to say anything," he says, quietly, avoiding your eyes again, "I didn't want to tell you because... I didn't want that to be your first impression of me. Not because I don't trust you, or because I don't value your friendship, because I do. Truly." He looks at you, his eyes searching your face. "It's because I'm... _ashamed_ of that part of me, of being such an ugly, disgusting creature..." He trails off, his resentment towards himself clear in his voice.

You reach out, your heart aching for this wonderful man in front of you, and take his hand. He looks down, avoiding your gaze, but doesn't pull his hand away, much to your relief.

"Remus, don't do that to yourself," you say, quietly, "You're good, and kind, and the closest friend I've got here. It's not your fault, so don't take it out on yourself. You deserve much better than that."

He shakes his head, looking up to meet your eyes again. His gaze then drops and he looks at your lips for a moment. Your cheeks begin heating up, and you're thankful that it's dark.

"I have to disagree with you, Y/N, but thank you."

"Thank _you_ ," you say, "for telling me, Remus. For trusting me. And you always can, you know. Trust me. After all-" you offer him a small smile, "-it's not like I have any other friends to tell."

Half of his mouth quirks up in a smile as he squeezes your hand before pulling it away. Your heart flutters at the contact.

"You mean to tell me that you and Severus don't gossip together? I'm shocked," he teases, and you can't help but giggle as the two of you begin walking again, side by side, but this time, seemingly closer than before. Your arm bumps against his as you make your way down the dark corridor.

"Surprisingly, no. _However_ , I do have what might be a gossip session scheduled with McGonagall tomorrow," you admit.

He looks down at you, a smile on his face, and it's as if the previous conversation never happened. Which isn't a problem, considering he looks considerably more at ease now that his lycanthropy is not the topic of discussion. You do hope to still ask him questions about it, to understand him and his life better, but you'll have plenty of time for that.

"I must admit, I'm a little jealous."

You laugh, Sirius Black far from your mind.

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind if you went to her room to gossip, too."

"Who said I was jealous of you?" Remus says, without missing a beat.

You look straight ahead, biting down on your bottom lip, but you can feel Remus's eyes on you as the two of you pass the dark library. You hope that he can't hear the pounding of your heart. Do werewolves have heightened senses in human form? You hope not.

"Well," you say, slowly, "why would you ever be jealous of _her_?"

" _Well_ ," he replies, imitating you, "she's getting to spend time with you, after all."

You bite back a smile. "We spend a lot of time together, too. Are you not sick of me yet?"

"I could never get sick of you," he says, and the way that he says it so simply, as if it's an obvious fact, makes your heart skip a beat.

"I mean, if you're jealous of McGonagall spending time with me, then you ought to be jealous of Snape, too-"

" _Never_ ," Remus says immediately with mock disgust, which makes you laugh loudly as the two of you reach the end of the corridor, where the stairs are.

"What could _possibly_ be so humorous, at a time like this?" comes Snape's voice. You jump, turning around to see him standing on the staircase above you. He raises one, inquisitive, judgmental eyebrow, looking between you and Remus with a sneer.

"Nothing that concerns you, Severus," Remus says smoothly, "any luck?"

"Clearly not, _Lupin_ ," Snape hisses back, making his way down the staircase towards and then past the two of you. You follow Remus's lead as he follows Snape. 

You exchange a look with Remus as you walk behind Snape, and he winks at you. You smile at him, nervously fidgeting with your wand. While you're still concerned, of course, about the matter of Sirius Black, there's something about Remus, about his smile and his quick wit and the brush of his arm against yours that makes everything seem manageable.

And maybe you ought to give Dumbledore more credit for putting the two of you together tonight.


	6. Chapter 6

You're in much better spirits the next morning, even as you sit down to grade essays for several hours straight until your meeting with McGonagall. Although, you admit, it's hard to focus on grading when the previous night is on your mind. There was no success in finding Sirius Black, which had you both thankful and disappointed. Thankful because you were terrified of the idea of finding him somewhere in the castle, but disappointed because you know that he's still out there, and could possibly get in again.

And, of course, Remus is on your mind. The full moon is sometime in the next week, in early November. You wonder if there's anything you can do for him, to make things easier. You know that Wolfsbane already helps ease the effects of the transformation, but your heart still breaks at the thought of the pain that he suffers every single month.

When you reach McGonagall's office, you let yourself in, closing the door behind you.

"Y/N! Come, sit!" she greets you, and upon waving her wand, two cups of tea and a plate of biscuits appear on her desk. You smile as you lower yourself into the chair across from her.

"I appreciate this, Minerva," you say, "more than you know. Severus is rather grumpy after last night."

She chuckles and takes a sip of her tea. "Yes, I figured he would be. Make sure you tell me straight away if he's ever giving you too much trouble. He really does appreciate you having you around, though, even if he never tells you directly."

"He does?"

"Very much so. Don't tell him I told you this, but-" She leans across the desk, as if she's afraid someone else will hear, even though it's only the two of you in the room, "-the only complaint I've ever heard about you from him is about your friendship with Remus."

She smiles and sits back, raising her eyebrows at you, as if to say, _what do you think about that_?

And honestly, you're quite surprised. "Really? I mean, I know that Severus doesn't like Remus. He makes that very clear, but I didn't think that my friendship with Remus bothered him that much."

McGonagall shrugs and takes another sip of her tea. "I suppose it does. But, speaking of Remus..." She trails off, waiting for you to speak.

You take a sip of your own tea, but can't hold back your smile. "What about him?"

"My dear, let me put it plainly." She sets down her teacup on its saucer with a gentle _clink_. "I may be getting old, but I'm certainly not blind. I see how the two of you look at each other."

You falter, lowering your teacup from your lips slowly. "What do you mean?"

McGonagall raises her eyebrows at you. "You know what I mean. You're interested in him, are you not?"

You nod hesitantly, to which she smiles. "I am almost certain he returns your feelings. I've known Remus for a while, now, ever since he was a young boy. He tends to hide things quite well, but his affection for you is not one of them."

You bite back a smile, your heart fluttering. If there's anyone's judgment that you trust, it's McGonagall's. Maybe this is the push you need to finally make your feelings for him known, but you're still nervous.

"Something you should know, however, about Remus," McGonagall continues, almost hesitantly, "is that he has been through an awful lot. A lot more than he may open up to you about, at least for now. I just advise you to be patient with him."

"I know about his, um, lycanthropy," you admit, and McGonagall looks surprised, "He told me last night."

"He did? He must trust you quite a bit already, then." She pauses for a moment. "He's a good man, Y/N."

"I know." You look down at the teacup in your hands, smiling to yourself. Although you get the feeling she knows a lot more about Remus's past than she's saying, you aren't bothered by it. He'll tell you himself when he's ready, and after all, you're sure you probably already know his biggest secret.

You spend a little while longer with McGonagall, discussing how your time as Snape's assistant has been going amongst other things, such as the upcoming Quidditch season. You were a Quidditch player yourself, so you're looking forward to being able to watch the matches now, especially considering what you've heard about Harry Potter's skill as Seeker.

You leave McGonagall's office after thanking her again for the chat, in a good mood. You wish you didn't have to go back to grading essays, but the sooner you get done, the sooner you can hopefully go spend some time with Remus.

When you arrive back at the Potions classroom, Snape looks up from his work impatiently, quirking an eyebrow as he looks you over.

"Finally done, are you?"

"Yes," you bite back, quite tired of his attitude, "and if you have a problem with it, you can speak to Minerva herself."

He rolls his eyes as he looks back to the papers on his desk, his quill scribbling across the parchment. You start to walk past him to your own desk, but he speaks again as you do so: "Minerva I don't have any issue with. But you are making the wrong decision by spending as much time as you do with Lupin."

You stop in your tracks, turning around to face him. So, what McGonagall said is true, and here Snape is, finally confronting you about it. You wonder what his excuses will be.

"And why is that, Severus?" you reply, slowly, trying to keep any building irritation at bay, at least for now.

He looks up, setting his quill down on his desk and crossing his arms.

"Because there is a lot you don't know about him, and he is not to be trusted. He-"

"If this is about him being a werewolf," you interrupt, "I know about that, and quite frankly, I don't care. It doesn't change my opinion on him whatsoever. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have a lot of work-"

"I have reason to believe that he is the one helping Sirius Black into Hogwarts."

Your blood runs cold at that as you hold steady eye contact with Snape. There's a fire burning behind his eyes, and you can tell that he's completely serious. You're at a loss for words. Remus would never. This is clearly Snape just lashing out because of some grudge, some prejudice against him.

"That's a very serious accusation," you reply.

"Has he never told you that he and Sirius Black were best friends? That they, alongside Potter and Pettigrew, would prance around the school as if they owned the place, tormenting-"

"But that was years ago," you protest, your voice barely above a whisper, "and after-after what Black did, Remus would never... Just because you're bitter about whatever happened when you were _kids_ -"

You had no idea that Remus was friends with Sirius Black, nor James Potter or Peter Pettigrew, both of whose deaths Black had a hand in. You can't imagine the pain that kind of betrayal would bring, from someone who you thought was your _friend_?You're sure that this is what McGonagall was referring to, when she said that Remus has been through a lot.

And now here's Snape, trying to turn you against Remus, for some reason that you don't quite fully understand. After all, it doesn't seem like he has any proof that Remus is helping Black.

When Snape doesn't reply right away, that hard, blazing look still in his dark eyes, you continue: "Whatever you're trying to do here isn't going to work. Remus and I are _friends_ , and despite whatever happened in the past, I know him, and he wouldn't be helping a _murderer_ into the school. _Now_ , as I said, I have quite a bit of work to finish."

Snape stays silent, much to your relief. But even as you sit down to grade, you stare at the essay in front of you, reading the same line over and over again, unable to focus. Remus has had no obligation to tell you that he was friends with Black, and you understand completely why he wouldn't want to. Who _would_ want to talk about such a thing? 

Your anger towards Snape increases, as well, because why can he not just let you enjoy your friendship with Remus? You have a hard time believing McGonagall, when she said that Snape appreciates having you around. If he truly appreciates you, why would he constantly lash out at you like this? It's not like you don't get your work done, because you do, and you do it well. So why can't he just accept that you enjoy spending your free time with someone who _clearly_ appreciates you?

You push away your frustration and distracting thoughts long enough to finish grading the essays. Once you're done, you pick up the stack of parchment, drop them on Snape's desk, and leave the room without a word.

You immediately make your way to Remus's classroom, where you find him reading a book, his feet propped up on his desk. He looks up as you come in, smiling. You can't help but notice he looks slightly paler than usual, the bags under his eyes more pronounced, as the full moon approaches.

"Everything alright?" he asks, setting his book aside as he removes his feet from the desk.

You nod and sigh. "Just Snape being Snape," you say, which isn't a lie, but you don't want to say anything more than that. "My gossip session with McGonagall went well, though."

He grins, and you think back to what she said: _he tends to hide things quite well, but his affection for you is not one of them_.

"Yes, yes, I almost forgot about that. Tell me, what could Y/N Y/L/N and Minerva McGonagall possibly have to gossip about?" he asks teasingly.

You giggle slightly, feeling your cheeks begin to warm.

"Quidditch, boys, you know. All the usual topics, of course," you reply, mirroring his playful tone.

The right corner of his mouth lifts up in a half-smile. Maybe this will be your lead-in to finally telling him how you feel about him, and how badly you want to kiss that smirk right off of his lips.

"Any examples?"

"She was just giving me some advice on this guy that I'm interested in," you say, fiddling with hem of your sweater nervously as you keep steady eye contact with him, "because apparently she thinks that he returns my feelings."

Remus quirks an eyebrow, that damned smirk still on his lips.

"I would trust her judgment. After all, he would have to be quite stupid not to return your feelings." He pauses, looking you over for a moment, and you swear that your heart is about to beat out of your chest. "Maybe, if you're comfortable, you can tell me who it is and I can tell you what I think?"

He knows. He has to know, and he's just teasing you, because why else would he be looking so smug?

" _Well_ -" you begin, but you're cut off by a nervous voice behind you.

"Professor? Oh, Miss Y/L/N, I-I didn't see you, I can come back-"

"No, no, you're absolutely okay, Neville," you say, spinning around in your chair to face the boy, who's hovering in the doorway, "You can stay, I was just going anyway."

You turn back to glance at Remus, and you swear you see a flash of disappointment in his eyes before he smiles past you at Neville.

"I'll see you later?" you say to Remus, quietly, as you stand up, but it's more of a question. As if you're asking him if he wants you to come back.

He nods. "Please," he says, just as quietly.

Your heart somersaults and you bite back a smile as you leave the classroom, closing the door behind you as you do so. Tonight's the night that you're going to tell Remus how you feel about him, and nothing is going to get in your way.


	7. Chapter 7

Something does get in your way of immediately going back to talk to Remus, and his name is Severus Snape.

As soon as you get back to his classroom, he magically has a long list of things for you to do. Completely stupid, useless things that don't actually need to be done, but you don't feel like arguing with him again, not after earlier. You decide that maybe, if you get everything done quickly and efficiently, you'll find time to see Remus before it gets too late.

But, as you go through his inventory of supplies, you can't shake the feeling that somehow Snape knows that something is going on between you and Remus, and that he's trying to stop it.

You break to head to dinner, and you see that Remus is already there. Your heart flutters when you think of earlier, and your longing for him deepens.

"I'm sorry I didn't come back," you whisper to him once you take your seat, leaning over so that Snape won't be able to overhear. Remus leans over, as well, lowering his head so that you can speak close to his ear. "Snape came up with a thousand things for me to do all of a sudden."

Remus, keeping his head tilted down, looks up at you from under his lashes, and your breath hitches slightly at how close the two of you are. He leans closer, and you have to repress your shiver at his breath hitting your ear as he replies.

"No need to apologize, Y/N," he says, his voice low, "I assumed you ran into something. Do you reckon he's trying to keep us apart?"

He pulls back to look at you, and you see a barely noticeable smirk on his lips.

"I have my suspicions," you reply before turning to your food, trying to hide your grin. The tension between the two of you is thick, and you can hardly stand it. It makes you want to drag him away from everyone else, away from the Great Hall, back to your sleeping quarters-

"Y/N."

You glance over upon hearing your name, at Snape, who appears rather annoyed. Then again, when doesn't he?

"Yes?" you say, as pleasantly as possible.

"Regarding the inventory, I need to know how much-"

"Why, Severus," Remus interrupts from the other side of you, and you watch in amusement as Snape's face twists even further into a glare of irritation, "Why don't you let the poor girl have a break? It's a Sunday evening, and from what I've heard, you've had her working all day."

You purse your lips tightly, avoiding eye contact with Remus, because you know that if you look at him that you'll just break out in a smile, and that would make Snape even more angry at the two of you.

"I advise you-" Snape starts, but he's cut off by McGonagall, who overheard the conversation from the other side of him.

"He makes a rather good point, Severus. I think Miss Y/L/N deserves a little time to do whatever she wishes to do after all of her hard work, do you not?" She raises her eyebrows at Snape, and the second he looks away, she winks at you over his shoulder. You smile at her gratefully in return.

Snape grumbles something under his breath that sounds something like a reluctant agreement, so you sneak a glance over at Remus, who seems to also be holding back a smile.

At the end of dinner, Snape is the first one to leave, practically leaping out of his seat, his black robes flying behind him. McGonagall gives you a somewhat apologetic look, as if to say _I'm sorry about him_ before leaving herself. You then leave with Remus, deciding to stop by Snape's classroom before heading to his. You're jittery with nervousness and excitement as you walk the halls together, your hand brushing against his more than a few times.

Snape's classroom is empty, so you suspect that he's either with McGonagall or Dumbledore, most likely complaining to them. But that's none of your concern now; you'll worry about Snape later.

Instead of going back to Remus's classroom, the two of you keep walking around, making small talk. The corridors are mostly empty at this point, with most students back in their common rooms or dorms scrambling to finish up homework before classes tomorrow. You end up near the Astronomy Tower, so you start leading him in that direction. It was one of your favorite places at Hogwarts as a student: secluded - because students aren't technically allowed up there - and with a beautiful view.

"The Astronomy Tower, hm?" Remus chuckles when he realizes where you're leading him.

You grin and grab his hand, pulling him after you. Your heart nearly stops as he interlocks his fingers with yours, and you're sure that you're most likely beet red.

The two of you climb the many, steep stairs up to the top of the tower. Once you reach the top, you turn in a circle, looking all around you at the many sights: the rest of the castle, the Quidditch pitch, and the Forbidden Forest, which seems to stretch for miles. A chilly breeze sweeps through, making you shiver slightly. You wish that you had on warmer clothes.

"I used to come up here all the time as a kid," you explain as you turn to look at Remus, "It was one of the best places to go to get away from everyone, at least in my opinion."

He offers you a small smile, and there's a distant look in his eyes as he puts his hands in his pants pockets. The two of you stand a few feet apart.

"I can't say that I ever spent a lot of time up here myself," he admits, walking away from you, towards the edge and peering over. "I definitely did spend a lot of time exploring the castle, though, with my friends." There's a hesitation in his voice, and you swear that he's going to continue, but he doesn't. Instead, he looks at you as you walk over to him, coming to a stop close by his side as you look over the railing as well. It's a bit terrifying, seeing how high you are.

You then look up at Remus, to see that he's already looking down at you, his gaze gentle. All of your prior confidence - the little that you had, anyway - seems to leave your body as you hold eye contact with him, and you pray that he'll finally just go ahead and make the first move.

After a moment, you can't help but break eye contact, looking back towards the view below you. Your heart nearly stops as Remus's hand comes up to your face, his fingers resting on your cheek to move your face gently back so that you have to look at him again.

Your breath hitches as he slides his fingers up to cup your face with his hand. You lean into his touch, and, with your heart beating out of control, you push yourself up on your tiptoes just as he leans down. Your lips are but a centimeter apart when you hear:

"I thought I would find you two here."


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: This chapter continues mostly 18+ material

You jump back, Remus's hand dropping from your face as he whips around at the voice.

Of _course_ , there stands none other than Severus Snape himself, arms folded across his chest and a smug look on his face that makes your blood boil.

Remus clears his throat. "Can we help you with something?"

You can't see his face from the angle that you're at, but you can hear the hint of frustration in his voice. You can't believe it; you thought you were finally in the clear by bringing him up here, and that you wouldn't be interrupted. Maybe if you had been interrupted by _anybody_ else in the school, you wouldn't be as irritated as you are.

"Dumbledore wants to have a meeting regarding the business surrounding Black," Snape says slowly, "Safety procedures and such. I'm sure you understand, Lupin." He raises an eyebrow at Remus.

"Absolutely," Remus responds coolly. He starts walking towards Snape, who doesn't turn his back until the two of you are within a few feet of him. Only then does he begin his descent down the winding staircase, Remus behind him, and you behind Remus.

The three of you walk in an awkward, tense silence all the way to Dumbledore's office. You exchange a few glances with Remus, but per usual, his expression is nearly impossible to read. However, you somehow just know that the two of you are equally aggravated with Snape.

You finally reach Dumbledore's office, and as you watch Snape enter, Remus leans down to whisper to you, his lips brushing against your ear:

"Meet me in my classroom at ten fifteen."

He straightens back up after that, not waiting for a response before heading into the office himself. You take a deep breath, hoping that you don't appear as flustered as you are as you follow his lead.

Once you step foot into Dumbledore's office, you see that everyone else is already here. You immediately make eye contact with McGonagall, who's standing directly to the right of Dumbledore's desk. She raises her eyebrows in unspoken question upon seeing you enter after Remus, so you shake your head and shift your eyes to Snape in response.

Dumbledore begins talking, but you can't focus on his words at all. You stand between Remus and Snape, leaning back against the wall, your arm touching Remus's. All you can possibly think about is how close you were to finally getting to kiss him, and now, how you're meeting him in his classroom later. While the ten o' clock curfew only applies to students, you've found yourself, by habit mostly, always being in your sleeping quarters or - if you're busy - Snape's classroom by ten.

So, Remus asking you to meet him after the curfew hour to avoid being interrupted again sets you aflame.

You're not sure exactly how long the meeting goes on for, but eventually, when you notice others starting to leave, you assume he dismissed you all. McGonagall motions for you to hang back, so you wait until everyone else exits before doing so alongside her.

"So?" she questions.

You shake your head, keeping your voice low just in case anyone is close enough to eavesdrop. "We were _this_ close to kissing, and then Severus interrupted to tell us about the meeting. And he seemed so... so _smug_ about having interrupted us," you admit, your frustration clear in your voice.

McGonagall tuts. "He was actually the one who suggested to Albus, you know, that we ought to have a discussion about the next steps regarding Black. I was with the two of them after dinner."

"Of course he was," you grumble.

McGonagall offers you a sympathetic smile. The two of you approach her office, which you stop outside and face each other. "Try not to let him get to you too much, dear. I'm sure he'll get tired of attempting to get between you and Remus eventually."

"Hopefully," you reply, forcing a smile in return. You say your goodbyes, and since you still have a while to spare before going to see Remus, you decide to head to the library to kill some time. Before you know it, it's just about ten, and Madam Pince is getting ready to close up for the night.

You're both jittery with excitement and nerves as you walk the dark corridors to Remus's classroom. This is it: no students and most importantly, no _Snape_ to interrupt you this time.

At least, you hope not.

The door is cracked slightly, allowing light from the classroom to illuminate the hall. You let yourself in, shutting the door behind you with a quiet click. You turn to face Remus, who's already standing up from his desk and walking across the room to you.

"Hi," you say, breathily, just as Remus reaches you, and before you even truly realize what's happening, his lips are against yours and you're being backed against the door.

You melt into the kiss immediately, wrapping your fingers in his hair as you kiss him desperately, letting out all of the tension from the last few months. He grips you tightly, keeping you pinned against the door. His hands slide up and under the back of your shirt, over your bare skin. You pull back, gasping for air as you reach for the buttons of his shirt, undoing them as quickly as possible. Once you have them all undone, he shrugs his shirt off and tosses it aside, revealing his scarred chest. You run your fingers over his chest - which is rising and falling just as quick as your own - up to his shoulders, his neck, and back into his soft hair.

He leans down to kiss you again, but this time, his hands slide down to your ass and he lifts you off the floor. You make a noise of surprise against his lips as you wrap your legs around his waist, and he laughs as he begins to carry you over to his desk.

"No interruptions this time," he says as he sets you down on it. You keep your legs wrapped around his waist, pulling him into you further as you start teasing the buckle of his belt. You can see his erection straining against the fabric of his pants.

"There better not be," you murmur as your lips meet his once more. 

He goes for your shirt, murmuring "Can I?" and waiting for your response before pulling it up over your head and tossing it to the side, just as he did with his own. He removes your bra next, reaching around your back and unclasping it with ease. His hand travels down your chest, over your breasts, and stops between your legs. 

"You're gorgeous, Y/N," he murmurs. He then slides his hand under your skirt, his fingers teasing your inner thighs and the lining of your panties, causing you to squirm and become even more wet by the second.

He kisses his way across your jawline and to your ear, where he says, quietly but sternly:

"Tell me what you want."

" _You_ ," you reply, letting out a soft noise of pleasure as his fingers tease your clit over your panties, "I want _you_ , Remus."

At that, he pulls his lips away from your ear as his other hand wraps in the hair at the back of your head, yanking your head back so that you're forced to make eye contact with him. Just as he does that, his fingers slide under your panties and he pushes one inside of you. You let out a moan at the feeling, and you watch as a smirk makes its way onto Remus's lips.

"You're so wet already," he breathes.

He inserts another, curling them inside of you as his thumb circles your clit.

" _Fuck_ ," you whimper, pleasure shooting through your body as he continues to pump his fingers in and out of you.

He pulls them out far too soon for your liking, leaving you squirming and soaked, but the temporary disappointment vanishes as soon as he steps back, undoing his belt and trousers all the while keeping eye contact with you, his gaze clouded with lust.

His erection springs free as he tugs down his pants and boxers down, stepping out of them before crossing back over to you. You immediately reach out, your fingers wrapping around his shaft as you begin to stroke him. He groans at your touch, dropping his head and squeezing his eyes shut.

He mutters something, but you're not quite sure what, so you continue to stroke him, your grip tightening and your pace increasing.

" _Fuck_ , Y/N," he groans, looking back up at you, "I-"

He reaches out, grabbing your wrist to stop you, and you panic momentarily, thinking that you did something wrong, but his next words assure you that you didn't.

"Get off the desk and bend over," he commands.

You do so immediately, but before you can turn around to bend over the desk, he pulls you into a deep, open-mouthed kiss, his hands sliding up into your hair. Your second heartbeat throbs as he breaks the kiss, turning you around and putting a hand on your back to push you down against the desk.

You feel him tug your skirt and panties down, ands you step out of them, kicking them to the side. You then feel him grip your hip tightly with one hand, his fingers digging into your skin as he positions himself at your entrance. You squeeze your eyes shut, and you both groan as he pushes himself into you. You then let out a sharp gasp as you begin adjusting to his size.

"Are you okay?" he immediately asks, his voice strained.

"Keep going," is all you're able to manage in response, moaning and gripping the desk as if holding on for dear life, as he grips your hips just the same.

He starts slow and your whole body reacts to the pleasure of him inside of you. After several, almost painfully slow strokes while you adjust to each other, he picks up speed, slamming into you deeper, grunting and groaning your name.

Your moans fill the huge room as the pleasure builds inside of you. He reaches around you with one hand, finding your clit and rubbing circles on it as he continues to fuck you, his hips slamming against your ass. You feel yourself coming close to release, and judging by his ragged breaths and less controlled thrusts, you're sure that he is, too.

Sure enough, after several more strokes, he lets out a choked, "I'm close, Y/N."

"Me too, Remus, _fuck,_ " you moan, and with another thrust, you're sent over the edge, Remus following your lead a few seconds later. You feel his dick throb inside of you as he releases, groaning your name.

He pulls out of you slowly, and as soon as he does, you straighten up and turn around, pulling him down into a slow, passionate kiss.

"That was amazing," you breathe, smiling against his lips.

He returns your smile, pecking your lips once more before pulling back.

"It absolutely was. You're beautiful, Y/N." Remus cups your face in his hands and presses a kiss to your forehead. "Now, let's get you cleaned up, darling."

Your heart flutters at the pet name and at his tenderness. It looks like things are going to work out in your favor, after all.


	9. Chapter 9

You can't get enough of Remus. For the next few days, you keep up the same schedule: sharing secret glances and smiles during the day, and then meeting in the late hours of the night, letting him have every inch of you. But inevitably, your streak is cut short by the full moon.

Plus, you can't help but think that Snape suspects that there's something more than just friendship going on between you two now. But it's not like he can stop you, and now that you've found a way to avoid interruptions, you aren't too worried.

The full moon falls on that following Friday, a day before the first Quidditch match of the season, which you know because that's all the students have been talking about all week. You're surprised, though, when you walk into Snape's classroom soon before your first period starts, to see him getting ready to leave the room.

"I need you to take care of classes today while I fill in for Lupin," he says, sounding almost bored, "Can you manage that?"

"Uh, sure. I mean, yes. I can."

"Good, and you know what to do for each class, correct?"

"Yes."

He walks past you and out the door, robes billowing behind him. You can't lie: you're quite nervous to be all on your own. Although you have taken the lead in some classes over the last few months of school, you've never taught any classes completely without Snape. But, you're sure you can handle it. Hopefully the students will be able to ease up a bit, as well, without him lurking over their shoulders.

You greet each class cheerily, and things go very smoothly all day, much to your relief. After teaching your final afternoon class, you decide to get out of the classroom for a bit. You make your way down the corridor, filled with many students going to and coming from classes. Some greet you as you pass, and with others, you catch snippets of conversation. However, one particular conversation catches your attention, which you overhear from Harry Potter and Ron Weasley as they pass you.

"...Hermione _told_ him where we're at, so how does jumping straight to _werewolves_ make any sense?"

You freeze and turn around.

"Harry! Ron!" you call. They turn and make their way back to you, pushing against the other students walking the opposite direction. Once they're close, you ask, in a hushed voice, "Not to eavesdrop, but _what_ did you say?"

"Snape assigned us an essay on werewolves for over the weekend," Harry explains bitterly, and you feel your anger already building inside of you.

"Yeah, even though we're nowhere near the werewolf unit. Makes no bloody sense, if you ask me," Ron grumbles, and you can't help but sense something else happened during the class period to put him in such a foul mood.

"That son of a bitch," you mutter under your breath, and both Harry's and Ron's eyes widen at your words.

"I- just- don't tell anyone I said that," you stammer, and both boys nod slowly. "But, um, thank you boys, I'll see you later." You turn on your heel and walk away, making a beeline straight for Remus's classroom, where you suspect Snape still is.

You can't believe him. You know exactly what he's trying to do: get the students to figure out that Remus is a werewolf so that Snape can get him fired. You don't even want to imagine what would happen if a student like Draco Malfoy figured it out. You can only hope that none of them think twice about it and that they only think it's simply Snape being Snape.

But _Merlin_ , are you mad. Your rage burns inside of you the more you think about his horrible attitude towards Remus, all of his constant snarky comments and dirty looks.

You burst into the classroom to see Snape, hovering at Remus's desk.

"What is your _problem_?" you nearly shout, losing your temper as soon as you lay eyes on him.

His head whips towards you, a scowl immediately appearing on his face at your tone.

"I could ask _you_ the same thing, Miss Y/L/N, barging in like-"

You slam the door shut behind you, so that no students can peer through the doorway and overhear. The last thing you'd want is for _you_ to be responsible for Remus's secret getting out. You would never forgive yourself.

"Explain to me, then, why you assigned the third years research on werewolves," you interrupt him, and Snape raises an eyebrow, looking at you as if you're stupid.

"Because they are _vastly_ behind. I would expect-"

"Don't _lie_ to me!"

" _Fine_!" Snape shouts back, causing you to flinch in surprise, "If you truly desire the truth, Miss Y/L/N, I will tell you the truth. It is because of the fact that Remus Lupin is _entirely_ unfit to be teaching in a school full of children, because he is nothing but a _menace_ -"

"He is _not_! Just because he's a werewolf doesn't mean he would ever, _ever_ harm anyone-"

"Has he failed to mention to you during your little escapades that he and his friends attempted to _murder_ me when we were young?" Snape snarls.

You open your mouth to reply, but nothing comes out. Your heart is pounding in your chest, the only noise in in the otherwise silent room. You hear students still chattering and laughing in the halls, oblivious to what is going on between you and Snape.

 _Murder_? He wouldn't. You almost want to laugh. Sweet, wonderful Remus, who holds you and touches you so tenderly and is nothing but kind to those around him, apart of a plot for _murder_?

That smug smile appears on Snape's lips, the same one that grinds your gears like nothing else does. He believes he struck something in you, but you don't believe him.

"There's no way," you say, but your voice comes out weak, much to your dismay.

Snape lets out a short laugh, void of real amusement. "Ask him about it some time then, and allow _him_ to tell you about how Black lured me to him one full moon, so he can tell you how I was nearly _killed_ -"

"But that's not Remus's fault!" you protest, "You just said it yourself, that Black was responsible, and it's not as if Remus can _control_ himself."

Snape shakes his head at you, his face twisted in anger, and you know there's no use arguing with him. He's not going to budge regarding his grudge with Remus, and you wish he'd just realize that he's not going to change your opinion, either.

"I don't expect you to understand," he says coolly, making his way across the room towards you. You remain silent as he passes you, pulls open the door, and exits the room. You stand there for a moment longer, collecting yourself and your thoughts before leaving, as well, pulling the door closed behind you.

You're filled with anger towards Snape and longing for Remus as you aimlessly walk the corridors, wondering how Remus will react to Snape's homework assignment and dreading the possibility that any of the students will put two and two together.

But for now, all you can do is wait.


	10. Chapter 10

The next day starts out rather eventfully. You attend the Quidditch match alone due to Remus still recovering from the full moon, and you watch Harry fall nearly fifty feet to the ground while going after the Snitch. Thankfully, you find out that he wasn't hurt too badly after visiting him in the hospital wing, but that his broom was destroyed. You feel bad; he seems rather distraught over the whole situation, so you remind him that nothing was his fault before leaving.

In the evening, after the match, you decide to go find Remus. His living quarters are right off of his classroom, so you head there, your heart fluttering at the idea of seeing him for the first time in about two days.

Once you reach his classroom, you let yourself in the first door, closing it behind you quietly. You cross the classroom, head up the small set of stairs to his office, where there's another door, which leads to the small bedroom. You rap your knuckles against the door, and within a few seconds, the door opens, revealing Remus, who splits into a tired grin when he sees you.

"There you are," he says, quietly, pulling you into his arms. You hug him tightly, feeling his heart beat as you bury your face in the crook of his neck.

"I missed you," you murmur, your voice muffled against him.

"I missed you as well, darling." He steps back from the hug, grabbing your hand and pulling you into the bedroom. You lay down on the bed with him, both of you on your sides facing each other, and he presses a kiss to the top of your head as you curl into him.

"How did yesterday go?"

You groan loudly, earning a laugh from Remus as he pulls you closer. He's extremely warm: just what you need after sitting out at the cold, rainy Quidditch match.

"Well, I did fine with my classes, but I can't say the same for Snape with yours."

Remus pulls away and props himself up on his elbow so he can see your face, his eyebrows pulling together in concern. "What do you mean?"

You sigh, reaching out and moving a stray lock of hair out of his face. You think of yesterday, your stomach twisting as you recollect your argument with Snape. You suppose that it's better that it comes from you first, instead of Remus being bombarded by complaints from his students first thing Monday.

"Severus, er, assigned homework to at least the third years, um, about identifying werewolves..." You trail off, watching as Remus sets his jaw.

"I should have figured," he says, "that he would pull something of the sort. But never mind that. Did he give _you_ any trouble?"

Snape's words echo in your mind: 

_Has he failed to mention to you during your little escapades that he and his friends attempted to murder me when we were young?_

You push the thought back, as much as you can, because you know it will never truly leave until you know the truth. But you trust Remus, and you know that he would never do such a thing. However, the knowledge still lingers in your mind, right along with the knowledge of Remus's friendship with Sirius Black when they were kids, which he still doesn't know that you know about.

But, never mind all that. You're almost angry with yourself that you're letting Snape get to you, because you know that's exactly what he wants.

"No," you respond, offering Remus a forced smile that you hope looks convincing, "He didn't."

Remus nods slowly and pulls you back close to him, but you can't shake the feeling that he knows you're lying to him. You are grateful that he's not pushing it, however, and instead, he asks you about the Quidditch match. You fill him in on everything as he runs his fingers through your hair. You could easily fall asleep right here in his arms.

Instead, you roll over to check the time, looking for the little clock on his bedside table. Remus takes the opportunity to spoon you, pulling you close to his chest and curling his body around yours. You smile to yourself, closing your eyes for a brief moment.

"I should go grab dinner before it's over," you murmur regretfully, not wanting to leave the comfort that Remus brings you.

"Yes, you should," he agrees, kissing the back of your head, "but, you should also come back later."

You sit up, turning over your shoulder to look down at him.

"Of course I'll come back later. I mean, I don't even want to leave now," you admit.

He smiles gently. "Darling, we have so much more time together. A few minutes away won't hurt. Not that I won't miss you, though-"

You giggle, leaning down to kiss him lightly on the lips. "I'll miss you, too. I'll be fast, I promise. Unless Severus hunts me down and makes me alphabetize his ingredients again, that is."

Remus smiles, and you feel his eyes on you as you get up off the bed, adjusting your sweater and preparing to leave. "I wouldn't be surprised if he does. In fact, I reckon he puts things back in the wrong order simply out of spite."

"Severus? Doing something out of spite? _Never_ ," you reply sarcastically, which earns a laugh from Remus.

"Get out of here, Y/N," he says, grinning, "Go eat. I'll be fine here, all by _myself_..."

"Oh, stop it!" you say, turning your back on him as he laughs to himself about guilt-tripping you.

"I'm joking, Y/N. I'll see you later, okay?"

You pause in the doorway, turning around to look at him. He lays in his bed, on his back, slightly propped up on his pillows with his hands behind his head and a slight smirk playing on his lips.

You look him over slowly, pursing your lips. The only thing stopping you from walking back over to the bed, straddling him, and kissing the smirk right off of his lips is the fact that you know he's still recovering from the full moon. But, like he said, the two of you have plenty of more time together, and the thought of that makes your heart swell with happiness.

"See you later, Remus."

You make your way to the Great Hall to catch the end of dinner. By the time to get there, most students have already finished and gone back to their common rooms for the evening, so the hall feels practically empty. You notice that Snape is gone, as well as McGonagall, so you make small talk with Flitwick while you eat. When you're done, you decide to head straight back to Remus's room, but as you walk through an empty corridor, you're interrupted by a small, hesitant voice calling your name.

You turn around to see Hermione Granger walking towards you, and you note that she looks extremely nervous.

"Hi, Hermione," you greet her pleasantly, "What can I do for you?"

She stops close to you, glancing over her shoulder before replying, as if she's worried someone will overhear. You can't begin to fathom what she'd be so stressed about, and why she wouldn't want someone to overhear. She looks back up at you, tucking her curly hair behind her ears.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course." You try to keep your upbeat tone in your voice.

Hermione peers back over her shoulder again before leaning close to you. You lean in, as well, turning your ear towards her, so that she can't see your eyes widen when she asks:

"Is Professor Lupin a werewolf?"

You pull away, clearing your throat, not sure exactly what to say. Of course, you should have figured that if anyone would have figured it out, it would be Hermione Granger. She seems to like Remus enough, so you have faith in her that she wouldn't spill the secret, but you're still hesitant. Seconds go by as you rack your brain for what to say, and Hermione looks up at you anxiously, fiddling with the strings on her sweatshirt.

"What makes you think that?" you ask, trying to sound indifferent.

She goes into what you've deemed as _Hermione mode_ , which is when she's asked a question and jumps straight into a formal definition or explanation. You've noticed over the months that it makes other students roll their eyes, but you find it rather impressive. For such a young girl, she's very intelligent.

"Well, see, I was already curious as to the reasoning behind his monthly absences, so I made note of when they were, but I hadn't really looked into it until Professor Snape assigned us the essays on werewolves yesterday - which I think you heard about - so, I did the essay last night and noticed things that connected back to Professor Lupin. I finally checked the lunar charts this morning with his absences, and I remembered that his Boggart was some sort of glowing ball, which I believe to be the full moon-"

"You're right," you interrupt, exasperated. It just bursts out of you, mostly because you needed to get her to stop talking before someone else came along and heard. Her eyes widen slightly.

"I was going to wait a few more months, just to verify the lunar charts, but I couldn't help myself, and I figured you would know." Her voice is small and timid, and you offer her a tired smile to let her know that you aren't mad.

"I'm impressed you figured it out," you admit, "After all, he had to tell me himself."

Hermione smiles a little at this.

"But," you continue, "you can't tell anyone, okay? Not even Ron or Harry, because if it gets out, he'll most likely have to leave."

Hermione nods seriously, her smile now faded.

"I won't. I promise. I figured, and nobody would want that. Professor Lupin is the best Defense Against the Dark Arts professor we've had."

You smile. "I'm quite glad you think so. Now, it's Saturday night, so stop worrying about homework and have some fun."

Hermione looks aghast at your suggestion, but returns your smile nonetheless.

"I suppose I'll try. Thank you, Miss Y/L/N."

"Any time, Hermione," you call after her as she spins on her heel and begins walking away. You're slightly nervous, knowing that Hermione knows, but you trust her to keep her word.

Now, the question is, do you tell Remus? You think to yourself as you return to his room, weighing the pros and cons. You'll leave it alone for right now, and decide later.

He's out of bed this time and in his office, leaning back in his chair and reading a book. He's dressed the same as earlier, in a t-shirt and sweatpants, and he still looks as good as ever.

"Hey, long time no see," he greets you, and you laugh as you climb into his lap, burying your face in the crook of his neck and wrapping your arms around him. He hugs you back, and the two of you sit like that for a while, silently, just enjoying each other's presence.

"Read to me?" you finally suggest, turning your head and kissing a scar on his neck gently.

"Absolutely. But let's get into bed first."

You get off of his lap, leading the way into the small bedroom, where the two of you get into bed. You pull the comforter up as you snuggle into his side, resting your head on his chest. He begins to read to you, his voice soft and soothing. You close your eyes as you focus on it, and before you know it, you're dozing off in his arms, all of your previous worries long gone.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: This chapter contains mostly 18+ material

The next several weeks pass by slowly, as everyone prepares for the end of the term. You're looking forward to the holidays, which you didn't think you'd be able to say when you started working at the school. Since you don't have any family to go to for Christmas, you thought you'd be spending the break alone, but now you have Remus, who will be at the castle for break as well. You can't wait for the weeks of alone time with him.

You meet with McGonagall again for tea one day in early December and fill her in on the situation between you and Remus. She gushes about how happy she is for the two of you, and how good you are for each other, which fills you with joy. Without a good mother of your own, you've found yourself looking to McGonagall to fill that spot, so it means the world to you to have her approval.

And surprisingly, you and Snape have stayed out of any fights ever since you confronted him about the werewolf essays. He's kept his mouth shut about Remus around you, as if he's done trying to turn you against Remus. You're relieved, but also suspicious.

On one Thursday evening, you find yourself done grading work and checking supplies in the Potions classroom, so you decide to go spend some time with Remus. The full moon is approaching once again, and day by day, you see the energy draining out of him. 

Once you arrive in his office, you see him at his desk, leaning over a stack of parchment, making a few quick marks on one before moving on to the next. He looks up when he hears your footsteps and smiles, somewhat apologetically.

"Hey, love," he greets you, setting his quill down and leaning back in his seat. You walk around to his side of the desk, leaning over to peck his lips.

"Hi," you say, glancing back to look at the pile, "Did I catch you at a bad time?"

He reaches out, pulling you towards him. You take this as an opportunity to straddle him, to which he chuckles and rests his hands on your hips.

"Sort of. I have quite a bit to grade before tomorrow." He runs his hands up and down your sides. "You can stay, of course, but I'm just afraid I won't be very good company."

You lean down, cupping his face in your hands. "I'll try not to distract you," you murmur against his lips before kissing him. He responds immediately, wrapping his arms fully around you and pulling you closer, sliding his hands up your back.

"You can't say that after you've already distracted me," he teases, before letting out a low groan as you roll your hips against him.

An idea pops into your head, and you smile slyly at him before climbing off of his lap. He shifts in his chair, adjusting his pants, where you can see his erection straining against the fabric.

"What?" he asks, grinning, "What's that look for?"

"Nothing," you say, "Just... go back to grading those papers." You lower yourself to your knees and begin to back up, so that you're underneath the desk. His eyes widen slightly once he realizes your intentions. He pushes his tongue against his cheek as he smiles and moves his chair slightly forward, towards the desk.

You begin to tease him, palming and rubbing him through his trousers. While you wish you could see his face, you watch as he flexes his left hand, which is positioned on his knee under the desk. You grin to yourself as you reach for his belt, unbuckling it practically in slow motion.

"You're killing me, Y/N," you hear Remus mutter from above you.

You then unbutton and unzip his pants, tugging them and his boxers down just enough to free his erection. Placing one hand on his thigh, you grab his cock with the other, beginning to stroke it slowly, and you feel him tense under your touch.

After a few more strokes with your hand, you shift closer to him, licking up the shaft from the base to the tip. You hear him let out a shaky breath, and he grabs your wrist of your hand that's resting on his thigh.

You tease him again, licking up the side before taking him fully in your mouth, as far as you can go until you gag.

" _Fuck_ ," he hisses. You begin bobbing your head, listening to his quiet groans as you increase your speed.

Until you hear the classroom door open.

You immediately remove your mouth from Remus, your heart beginning to pound even more than it already was. Thankfully, considering you're up in his office, whoever came in has to cross the classroom and walk up the stairs to get to where you two are, but that's not nearly enough time for you to get out from under the desk and not appear suspicious.

So, you stay put.

"Lupin," you hear the voice call, and you almost want to burst out laughing.

 _Snape_.

Of _all_ people.

Remus clears his throat, reaching down to tuck himself away and zip up his pants, but you reach out and stop him, wrapping your hand back around his shaft.

"Up here," he calls back to Snape, before lowering his voice so much that it's barely audible in order to speak to you: " _Y/N_ -"

You hear Snape's footsteps, which stop in the doorway of the office. You cover your mouth with the hand that's not stroking Remus, trying not to make any noise, but it's incredibly hard.

"I brought you your potion," Snape drawls, and you hear him stepping closer to the desk - closer to _you_. You then hear a _thunk_ as he sets down what you assume is a goblet full of Wolfsbane, and you can only hope that he won't stick around.

"Thank _you_ ," Remus half-gasps on the last word as you take him into your mouth again, focusing with your tongue on his tip.

"You don't look well," Snape notes, "You look rather pale."

"I, um," Remus says in a strained voice, clearing his throat as you continue to deep throat him, "Just usual, um, side effects. From the-the full moon."

You can practically _hear_ Snape's raised eyebrow in his voice. "I see."

He pauses for a moment, and during his pause, you take your mouth off Remus. You then lick up the side of his shaft again, pressing your tongue flat against it, him tensing as you do so.

"Any chance you've seen Y/N? I _assumed_ she would be with you, as she is every other hour of the day..." Snape trails off, and you mentally beg him to leave.

"No," Remus replies, his voice even more strained, and you can tell that he's close. You decide to sit back, removing your mouth and hand from him, to wait until Snape leaves. "If-if she's not here, she's usually in the library. But, if I happen to, er, come across her, is there a message you'd like me to pass along?"

You cover your mouth with both hands, trying not to laugh.

"No... I was simply curious. Good evening, Lupin."

To your relief, you hear Snape's footsteps fading, heading back towards the door.

"Good evening, Severus."

As soon as the classroom door shuts, Remus pushes back his chair and leans down to look at you incredulously.

"You're _unbelievable_ ," he says, but his smile gives him away. You grin, getting out from under the desk and moving towards him, still on your knees.

"At least let me finish what I started," you tease, wrapping your hand back around his base. He sucks in a breath through clenched teeth at your touch, leaning his head back.

"Please do," he groans as you begin sucking him again. Before long, as his hand tightens in your hair, you can tell he's close.

" _Fuck_ , Y/N, just like that, I'm-"

You suck him until he releases in your mouth. You pull your head back, swallowing his cum and grinning up at him. He gazes down at you, lips slightly parted and his chest rising and falling heavily. He slightly shakes his head at you, a smile forming, and you can tell he had just as much fun with that as you did.

"Unbelievable," he repeats, smirking, and your second heartbeat throbs. 

"Consider me fully distracted. Now, get up here."


	12. Chapter 12

Another full moon comes and goes, along with the end of the term, which means yet another Hogsmeade trip before students head home for the holidays. You're in Snape's classroom around the time that they leave for the village, quietly arranging supplies.

"Any plans for the holidays, Severus?" you ask, simply to break the deafening silence. Things have remained oddly civil between you two over the last few weeks, and thankfully, he never caught wind of the fact that you were under the desk in Remus's office that one evening.

"What do you think, Y/L/N?" he replies from his seat at his desk.

"I was just making conversation," you say curtly in return. You see him look up at you, narrowing his eyes, out of the corner of your eye as you place a new jar of Gillyweed on a shelf.

"And what of you? More sneaking around with Lupin, I presume?"

You look over your shoulder at him, pursing your lips tightly. He raises an eyebrow at you, smirking slightly.

"Is that a problem?"

His smirk fades as he looks you up and down quickly, a look of disapproval clear on his face, and you sigh inwardly. You know you're about to get another lecture on why he believes Remus is a terrible person. When will he just give it up?

"Did you ever discuss with him what I told you about his murder attempt? Does he know that you know the fact that he and Black were friends?" Snape asks.

You turn your back, picking at the peeling label on a jar of Gurdyroot.

"No," you admit, quietly.

"And why, Y/N, is that?" he snaps, raising his voice, "Because you want to hide from the truth as long as possible? Because what you don't want to see him for what he truly is: a vile, inhumane creature?"

Your anger blazes inside of you at his words, but you try to keep your tone as even as possible as you speak.

" _Because_ I don't quite trust your judgment," you say as you turn around to face him. You hold steady eye contact with him, despite his icy gaze. "After all, you were - and are _still_ \- the only one to ever have anything bad to say about Remus. Harry Potter, too, who, in my opinion, is nothing like you made him out to be. I think that _you_ pick and choose the people you don't like and attempt to make their lives a living hell. Am I wrong, Severus?"

And this, apparently, is the wrong thing to say.

" _You_ ," he hisses, pushing himself up from his desk, "are entirely insufferable, Y/L/N, and I am going to get you removed from your position." Your heart drops as he continues, because you sense that he's not just threatening you. You really crossed the line this time. "The last thing I need is a know-it-all assistant with a short temper and an affinity for disgusting, low-life monsters-"

" _Fine_ , then," you shout, finally losing your temper, "Go run off to Dumbledore and complain to him that you're upset that Remus and I have formed a relationship even though it doesn't _concern_ you at all, and everything that I _do_ do that concerns you makes your job easier! See if I care!"

He shoots one last glare at you before leaving the classroom. You feel tears burning at the backs of your eyes, but quickly blink them away. Technically, since Dumbledore hired you, you don't think that he would fire you for something as silly as this, but the fear still lingers. You need this position if you ever want to become a full-time professor one day, which you absolutely do. And plus, if you lose your job, you won't be able to see the your coworkers or the kids - who you've grown to love - anymore, not to mention Remus.

You leave the classroom, not sure where to go exactly. You want to pull yourself together a bit before heading to see Remus, and you don't want to go to Dumbledore's office - not while Snape's there, anyway.

You end up by the Divination classroom, and oddly enough, Trelawney has already seemed to be expecting you.

"Ah, Y/N," she says, "I'm so glad you're here. I have something to tell you."

You decide to give her the benefit of the doubt. Divination was never your favorite subject at Hogwarts, and you know you aren't alone in that. Even the other teachers don't seem to be fond of it, but considering you need a distraction right now, why not hear her out?

"What is it, Sybill?"

She gets a glossy, distant look in her wide eyes as she gazes at you. You smile awkwardly, not quite sure what else to do.

"You will learn that some are not who they appear to be, my dear, in the first week of June."

 _Great_.

Your mind flits to Remus, but you push the thought away immediately. You've got to stop letting Snape get to you. And after all, there's no guarantee that this is an accurate prediction, anyway.

Still, as much as you hate to admit it, the thought is a bit unsettling.

"Um, do you know who?" you ask, hesitantly.

She shakes her head. "I advise you to be cautious, that is all."

You nod once. "Will do," you reply, before turning to leave, "Thank you, Sybill."

"Anytime, dear!" she calls after you, her usually soft voice loud in the empty corridor. You suck in a deep breath, smiling at a few of your second-year students as you pass. The sinking feeling returns as you think of Snape, and now, of Trelawney's warning.

 _The first week of June_.

If you take it that the prediction is accurate, that's just before the end of the school year. Does that mean you'll still be employed here? You hope so, that is, but then again, who are the people that you're going to learn are not who they appear to be?

Your mind goes to a little over a month ago, when Snape told you that he thought that Remus helped Sirius get into the school during the Halloween break-in. It would make sense, you suppose, if prediction was about Remus, but who would the other person be?

As you walk the corridors, your feet taking you towards Dumbledore's office, you decide to wait and see. Maybe you should pull back from Remus a bit, no matter how much it hurts, just in case...

As you approach his office, Dumbledore is just leaving. He sees you and nods in greeting, adjusting his half-moon spectacles.

"Y/N. Just the person I was hoping to see. Walk with me, will you?"

You join him, the two of you walking side by side down the corridor, towards the courtyard. You look outside to see that it's snowing rather heavily, and that there's several bundled-up first and second years running around in the snow, throwing snowballs at each other. Another few are off in a safe corner, working on a rather lopsided snowman. You smile faintly at the sight.

"You miss being that young and carefree, don't you?" Dumbledore muses.

You nod. "At times, yes. And this is one of those times."

Your eyes still on the kids, you hear Dumbledore chuckle lightly from beside you. The two of you stop at the edge of the courtyard, just out of reach of the snow.

"I have to agree with you." He pauses. "I'm sure you are aware that I heard of your spat with Severus."

"Yes, sir," you reply, quietly, keeping your eyes trained forward, "I figured as much."

Getting a closer look at the kids, you recognize Ginny Weasley from under her vastly oversized coat. You watch as she forms a snowball in her mittened hands before throwing it directly at one of her classmate's faces. You marvel at her aim.

"Severus has been a bit on edge this year," Dumbledore continues, "for a number of reasons, and he just so happens to be taking out his anger on you. I assure you, however, that you have done nothing wrong."

You turn to face Dumbledore.

"So I'm not fired?"

Again, he chuckles and shakes his head. "Not in the slightest. I think I can speak for the entire staff, as well as the students, when I say that we enjoy having you here, Y/N."

You let out a sigh of relief. That's one thing off your list of worries.

"Thank you, sir."

Dumbledore smiles at you briefly before gazing past you. "Ah, hello, Remus," he calls.

You turn, watching as Remus approaches, and you smile widely at him. You're hit almost instantly with the reminder of the prediction, and you feel your smile falter. It's a slight movement, but when Remus's eyebrows pull together, you know that he noticed.

"Hello," he greets both of you before looking out at the courtyard. He looks back at you.

"I was looking for you," he says, "and I just stopped by Severus's room, but he seemed in a worse mood than usual."

"That," Dumbledore speaks up before you get a chance to respond, "would be my fault. We had a chat, and I do believe I made his already foul mood even worse."

A smile plays on Remus's lips as he looks between you and Dumbledore.

 _You will learn that some are not who they appear to be in the first week of June_.

"Well, I must be off. The two of you enjoy the rest of your day," Dumbledore says.

Both you and Remus murmur goodbyes as Dumbledore walks away, and as soon as he's out of earshot, Remus turns towards you, leaning over slightly.

"Are you okay?"

 _You will learn that some are not who they appear to be in the first week of June_.

You look up at him, into his concerned, light hazel eyes, your heart sinking.

"Yeah, I'm okay. Snape and I just got into a little argument earlier and it threw me off, I reckon. But I'm fine." You break eye contact, looking back out to the courtyard, just in time to see the snowman fall over and break apart. You hear several loud groans and accusations of whose fault it was.

Remus knows you're lying, and you know that, but he doesn't say anything to push it.

"Are you up for a walk around the grounds?" he suggests.

Your heart sinks even further, but you need time to think.

"I'm actually really quite tired. I was thinking of going to lay down."

You risk a glance up at Remus, whose expression is now unreadable; completely closed off.

"Alright. I'll see you at dinner?"

_Some are not who they appear to be._

"Sure," you reply, before turning and walking off, towards your sleeping quarters, tears already blurring your vision.


	13. Chapter 13

You hide out in your room until dinner, thinking over your situation as you lay in bed. You need to just talk to Remus; if you ignore him, if you push him away, you're just falling into exactly what Snape wants.

You'll talk to him after dinner, you decide as you walk to the Great Hall. You'll confront him about everything Snape has mentioned to you and tell him about Trelawney's prediction. You need the truth, and you need it to come directly from Remus.

You sit down in your usual spot in the Great Hall, between him and Snape. The Hall is filled with loud chatter about the earlier Hogsmeade trip and now, Christmas; this is the last meal before the students head home for the holidays tomorrow morning.

You turn to smile at Remus, to let him know that you're okay, after your departure earlier. He offers you a smile in return, his eyes searching your face.

"Are you feeling better?" he asks.

You nod, despite your stomach turning.

"I need to talk to you later," you say, quietly.

He nods once in silent understanding, but you can see his apprehension. You're not sure what to say: you wish that you could offer him some reassurance that you're not upset with him, or that he didn't do anything wrong, but the truth is is that you just don't know if he did or not.

You let your gaze drift over to the Gryffindor table, where you spot Harry Potter. He's sitting with Ron and Hermione, per usual, and you can't help but notice that he looks rather distraught, his chin propped up on his fist. Your initial thought is that it's because, yet again, he wasn't able to go to Hogsmeade with his friends, but something about his expression tells you that there's something more going on. Maybe you'll try to catch him after dinner and check in with him.

You think back to what Snape said about Remus helping Sirius Black into the school, but then again, it'd be to get to Harry, and from what you can tell, Harry and Remus seem to have a good relationship. There's no way that Remus would be plotting with Black against Harry.

Right?

You glance over at Snape, who's turned almost completely in his chair, his back to you as he talks with McGonagall. He's clearly still mad about earlier, but you're sure he'll get over it. You hope so, anyway.

"What's on your mind?" Remus asks.

You lean back in your chair, looking over at him. You have a feeling that the minute you're alone with him, you'll just break down in his arms. You need to hold your ground, though, and get the answers that you need.

"Too much," you admit, the corner of your mouth quirking up slightly. He smiles, too, but he still looks concerned.

"I get it," he replies, "but I'm here for you. Whenever you need me. You know that, right?"

You reach over under the table, grabbing his hand. He smiles - a real one, this time - and interlocks your fingers, squeezing your hand in return. Some of your anxiety eases at his touch and reassurance, but you're still on edge.

"I know," you murmur. "Thank you."

With your intertwined hands resting on Remus's knee under the table, you sneak a glance over at Snape, who already happens to be looking at you. His gaze drops to your and Remus's hands, to which he rolls his eyes and turns away again. Despite your frustration at how things are going, you almost want to laugh.

You exchange a glance with Remus, who simply smiles and shakes his head.

The rest of the meal goes similarly: you and Remus conversing quietly, mostly about the upcoming holiday, while receiving occasional petty glares from Snape.

When it comes time to leave, your stomach turns at the thought of finally confronting Remus about everything that you've tried to forget about over the last few months. You consider backing out, pretending everything is fine, maybe just until after the holidays.

But then, you remember that you that already boxed yourself in by telling him that you need to talk to him. There's no way he'll drop that, not after you've been acting as strangely as you have.

You stall, however, by telling him that you have to talk to Harry and that you'll meet him in his office when you're done.

Thankfully, Harry, Ron, and Hermione are still seated at the Gryffindor table even as their house-mates begin to leave. You make your way over to them, offering Hermione a smile as she catches your eye.

"Hi," you greet them, stopping at the table behind Harry and Ron, facing Hermione. "Harry, can I borrow you for a moment?"

"Um, sure," Harry says quietly as he pushes himself up from the table, exchanging a furtive glance with his friends.

"You're not in trouble for whatever you think you're in trouble for," you murmur to him as you walk side by side out of the Great Hall. He seems to relax upon hearing that, but you still sense quite a bit of tension.

"I just wanted to check in with you," you continue, "Make sure you're doing okay."

He simply shrugs, avoiding your eyes. "'M fine," he mutters.

You're not sure what's going on in his head, but you don't push it.

"If...if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm always available. I'll be here over the holidays. And it'll stay between us, if you decide you would like to talk about anything."

He looks up at you, and you see an indescribable pain in his eyes, something you haven't seen before, even after Black broke into the school months earlier. You're even more curious as to what happened.

"Thank you," is all he says, and you send him off, back to his friends.

And now, it's time to talk to Remus.

You wearily make your way to his office, racking your brain for a way to start the conversation.

_Snape told me you were apart of a plot to kill him. Is that true?_

_Is there a chance that you're helping your mass murderer friend into the school to help hunt down a teenage boy?_

_Trelawney told me a prediction. You think it's about you? Have you been playing innocent this whole time?_

"Hey," Remus greets you with a weary smile when you arrive.

"Hi," you respond, hesitantly lowering yourself into the chair across from him at his desk. He leans back in his chair, crossing his arms over his chest and cocking his head ever so slightly at you, a look of both concern and confusion on his face.

"What is it?"

You break eye contact with him, looking down at your hands, as everything begins to pour out of you. You tell him about how Snape told you that he was friends with Black and his brief mention of whatever happened between them all where Snape was nearly killed, and finish by bringing up that Snape is suspicious of him. You stop yourself before mentioning the prediction, and hesitantly raise your eyes to meet Remus's again, your heart pounding in anticipation at his reaction.

All the color has drained from his face. He looks rather shell-shocked, eyebrows raised, but when you make eye contact again, he clears his throat and lowers his gaze, away from yours. You anxiously wring your hands in your lap as you await his response.

"I...wish you would have brought this up sooner. This is what's been bothering you?" There's an unfamiliar edge in his voice that you don't like, but you stay quiet, simply nodding to answer his question when he looks up at you again. He sets his jaw, and you can't tell if he's angry at you for holding it all in, or Snape for telling you in the first place.

"Fine," he says, shortly, "Yes, I was friends with Sirius Black. Obviously, I didn't know him quite as well as I thought I did." You detect a masked pain in his expression, even as he looks away from you. Some of your anxiety eases at this - at his obvious disdain towards Black - but you're still on edge.

"As for the event that he mentioned... It occurred during our fifth year. Let's just say that Severus had picked up on symptoms of my.. _condition_ , and so, without telling the rest of us, Sirius thought it would be, er, humorous, I suppose, to tell Severus to follow me to the Whomping Willow one full moon." He must notice your face twist in confusion, so he adds a quick clarification. "There's a path from the Whomping Willow to the Shrieking Shack. That's where I would transform when I was in school. But anyway, once James - James Potter, another of our friends - realized what Sirius had done, and what Severus was about to get into, he took him out just in time. He saved Severus's life. And mine, in a way."

You stare at Remus, slightly slack-jawed, not sure what to say.

"You didn't know?"

Remus shakes his head slowly. "I didn't find out until the next morning. Didn't talk to Sirius for months afterwards."

You feel guilt settle in. Remus seems so distraught, and rightfully so. After all, he would have been the one to reap the consequences for the whole situation if it went the way it was intended to, even though Black orchestrated it. How could you, even for a second, think that he'd involve himself in such a scheme?

"I'm sorry," you murmur, and Remus shakes his head again.

"I would have told you," he says, quieter. You wish he'd look at you. "And regarding his suspicions, I'm not helping Black. I never would."

Your wish is granted, but not in the way that you'd like. When he finally does look at you, his gaze is icy, a hard look in his eyes, and it catches you off guard.

"Do _you_ think that I would?"

You struggle for something to say, as the guilt sets in further. What are you supposed to say, that yes, you _were_ unsure?

"No, I mean, I-" You search for the right words, but you can't seem to find them.

Remus suddenly breaks eye contact, looking down at his desk.

"I have things to do."

"I'm sorry?"

"I have things to do, Y/N," he repeats, the same hard edge from his expression now mirrored in his tone, "I'll see you tomorrow."

You sit there for a minute, your heart still pounding as you try and process everything that just happened. You finally push yourself up out the chair, your hands shaking as you leave the room without a word.

Once you reach the hall, anger starts building inside of you, replacing your confusion and shock. You don't want to be alone, exactly, but you also don't want to have to talk to anyone, especially about what just happened. So, per usual, you head to the library, still shaky.

You pick a random book off a shelf, curling up in your usual arm chair, far away from the door. Now that classes are over, there are no students doing any last minute assignments or studying, so the library is empty aside from you and Madam Pince, which is fine by you.

You stare at the page in front you, trying desperately to distract yourself from the thoughts of Remus's dismissal of you and his cold glare. You thought you'd feel better after telling him everything, but instead, you just fucked things up further by not immediately saying that you trust him in not helping Black.

After a while of staring at the same page, the same sentence, reading it over and over and not processing what it says, you angrily put the book back and leave the library. You head back to your living quarters, and once you're there, you climb into your bed - not bothering to change - before pulling the covers up to your chin and staring at the ceiling in frustration.

You don't know how long it is until you finally drift off; most likely the early hours of the morning. 

The last thought you have, however, is that this is going to be one hell of a holiday if you and Remus don't make up soon.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Disclaimer: This chapter contains 18+ material

You skip breakfast the next morning, not wanting to have to talk to anyone. Instead, you lay in your bed on your side and stare at the blank wall. You really should have brought more decorations at the beginning of the year, or really anything at all, for that matter, to make your room feel a little more like home.

You're not sure how long you just lay there, thinking of your conversation with Remus from the night before. A small part of you wants to go find him and set things straight, but most of you wants to just avoid him until he comes to you first.

Around lunch time, you finally pull yourself out of bed, unable to ignore your grumbling stomach any longer. You slowly get dressed, pulling on a sweater and jeans. You know that the Great Hall is going to be practically empty, with the majority of students having gone home this morning, and somehow that makes you dread going down there even more.

When you end up at the Great Hall, it's even worse than you thought. While the teacher's table is full, there's only six kids: two first-years, a sulky-looking Slytherin, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione. You quietly greet them as you pass the Gryffindor table, and notice that all three of them have incredibly solemn expressions, weirdly enough, considering it's the holidays. You suppose you can't judge, though; you're sure you're wearing a similar expression.

You avoid looking at Remus as you take your seat next to him.

"Good morning," you murmur, grabbing a roll. There's a beat of silence before he responds, equally as quiet.

"Good afternoon's more like it. Why weren't you at breakfast?"

"Wasn't hungry." You sneak a glance at him, only to see that he's already looking at you, his face unreadable. The two of you hold eye contact for a moment before he looks away. Your heart drops, and you're not sure what to say, so you stay quiet.

"And what about you, Y/N?" You look over at the sound of McGonagall, who's leaning back in her seat and looking at you past Snape. "Any plans for the holidays?"

You shake your head. "Just staying here, Minerva."

She nods slowly, raising her eyebrows at you, to which you just shake your head again. The two of you have become rather fluent in unspoken conversation. She always seems to know when something's going on with you.

You grab another roll, not quite hungry for anything else. Out of the corner of your eye, you see Remus pushing back his chair, apparently ready to leave. You give in to your desire to turn and look at him, watching as he stands up without a word. He doesn't even glance in your direction before walking away.

You sigh, a little louder than you had intended. For the first time since your argument the previous morning, Snape addresses you.

"Trouble in paradise?" he asks, slightly smirking.

You resist the urge to roll your eyes. With six months left in the school year, you wonder if you'll ever be on good terms with both of them at once. You seriously doubt it at this point.

"Why do you care?" you ask, not bothering to mask your annoyance. You catch McGonagall's eye again, and she offers you a sympathetic smile.

"I don't. I just find it amusing," Snape clarifies. Even though most of your troubles with Remus are because of him, you would never tell him that, solely because he'd be thrilled to hear it. After all, that was his whole point of telling you what he told you, isn't it? To pull you away from Remus?

Between your affection for Remus and out of spite towards Snape, you can't let him get what he wants.

You don't respond, instead pushing away your plate and leaving the Great Hall. You almost wish that it wasn't the holidays, so that you'd have classes and homework to grade to keep you busy. You find yourself heading towards Remus's classroom, but once you get there, it appears to be empty. 

You could go to the library, you suppose, but you doubt you'll be able to distract yourself with any reading. You don't want to go back to your room, either, because you know you'll just end up laying in bed and staring at the wall for the rest of the day. So, you start off to the next place you think of.

Once you get to the other side of the castle, you begin climbing the stairs up to the top of the Astronomy Tower. With each step, you feel the air growing colder, but you keep going. When you arrive at the top, the now freezing air nipping at your bare hands and face, you walk over to the railing, looking out across the grounds. You can see Hogsmeade, and decide that maybe you'll make a trip to the village over the holidays, considering you haven't been in a while.

You also can't help but smile to yourself as you think of how you and Remus almost had your first kiss up here, and then, the night that followed. You ache for the feeling of his soft lips on yours now, as you pull your sweater sleeves over your hands and cross your arms to try and retain some warmth.

"There you are."

You jump as you're torn out of your own bubble by the voice, turning around. Remus is walking towards you, hands in his pants pockets.

"I was looking for you," he continues as he approaches, "I would have checked here first, but considering how cold it is, I didn't think you'd be up here."

He stops in front of you and looks you up and down briefly, watching as you shiver. You're not sure what to say, but thankfully, he speaks up again as he steps towards you, wrapping a protective arm around you and pulling you close to his side, walking you back towards the stairs. You lean against him, taking in the warmth that radiates off of him and enjoying the feeling of being this close to him.

"Let's get you inside," he says, "I'll make you some tea."

He lets go of you and the two of you begin the descent to the bottom of the tower, taking your time on the stairs. You glance over at him, relieved that he seems to be wanting to talk to you again, but slightly confused as to what he's feeling.

"You aren't mad?" you ask, somewhat timidly.

"No," he replies after a brief pause that makes you doubt his answer, but quickly starts to explain himself. "If anything, I was just frustrated that, well, that Severus decided to tell you all that in the first place, but I suppose I shouldn't have expected anything less of him. I don't blame you for doubting me, either." He shrugs. 

Your heart aches, and you feel the guilt rising in you again for suspecting that he'd be helping Black even for a second.

"I do trust you, you know," you say, reaching out and taking his hand. He smiles, but it doesn't quite reach his eyes as he brings your hand up to his lips and presses several kisses to your cold fingers.

The two of you walk to his classroom in a comfortable silence, still holding hands. You're glad that you were able to make up so quickly, so that you can hopefully enjoy the rest of the holidays together before the students return for the new term.

As you sit in his office and watch him make tea for you both, your thoughts flit to Trelawney's prediction, which you never mentioned last night. You decide to keep it to yourself for just a little longer. After all, if it's accurate, you have until June before you really need to worry about what it means. Maybe, until then, you'll meet with McGonagall and get her thoughts.

You wrap your hands around the cup of tea, the heat immediately warming your skin. Remus sits across from you, smiling as he watches you and lifts his own cup to his lips.

"Why were you _really_ not at breakfast?" he asks.

You smile sheepishly. "I figured you were still upset with me," you admit, "And I figured Snape was also still upset with me after yesterday, so I didn't really feel like sitting between you two."

Remus chuckles. "Fair enough."

You set your cup down and rub your hands on your thighs, trying to warm up your legs. Remus notices and sets his cup down as well, nodding his head towards the door of his bedroom.

"Would you like to go get in bed?"

You nod and start towards the door, a little too eagerly. Remus laughs and follows you, bringing your cups of tea with him. He carefully sets them down on the nightstand as you climb under the covers and move yourself over so that there's room for him. He follows your lead, getting into bed next to you and holding out his arm. You snuggle into his side, resting your head on his chest and closing your eyes as you breath in his familiar, comforting scent. He wraps his arm around you, holding you close to him. It feels as if the brief dispute between you two never even happened.

"Have you spoken to Harry at all since yesterday?" you ask suddenly.

"Mm, no, actually," Remus replies, between pressing kisses to the top of your head, "Which surprised me, honestly. I was expecting him to drop by, considering he did for the first Hogsmeade trip, but I didn't see him all day. Why do you ask? Didn't you speak with him?"

You rest your hand on his chest, right over his heart. You feel it beating steadily under your palm. He lifts up his other hand - the one that's not holding your waist - and puts it over yours.

"Curious, that's all. He's looked off since dinner last night. I did talk with him for a moment, but I couldn't really get anything out of him. I just reminded him that I'm here if he needs someone."

Remus is quiet for a minute as he absentmindedly traces patterns on the back of your hand with his finger.

"I'm not sure what it could be. I promised to teach him the Patronus Charm starting next term, so perhaps I can pick his brain then."

You sit up and turn so that you can look at Remus. "The Patronus Charm? Really?"

He nods and sits up himself, leaning back against the headboard. He grabs his cup of tea, taking a slow sip.

"He's been on edge about the Dementors ever since his accident at the Quidditch match last month, so he asked me how to defend himself against them. I know it's advanced, but I have faith in him."

You smile. You know that Harry's been through a lot at such a young age, so you're glad that he has Remus looking out for him. You're reminded, then, of something Snape briefly mentioned during one of your arguments about Remus.

"You were friends with Harry's dad, weren't you?"

Remus purses his lips and nods. "Yes. His mother, as well. James and Lily."

"Does Harry know?"

Remus sighs lightly and rests his hands behind his head as he leans back against the headboard, his sweater lifting a bit to show a strip of his skin. You take the moment to look him up and down, admiring how attractive he is.

"No, I haven't told him yet," he admits, "I just haven't found the right time, I suppose. I will, though, eventually."

"I get it," you say, before you slowly smile at him, looking him over again. He returns your smile, and having noticed your wandering gaze, there's a mischievous glint in his eyes.

"What?"

You then move closer to him, straddling his waist and leaning over to peck his lips. He shifts under you, moving his hands to hold your hips.

"Oh, this is what we're doing now?" he says, laughter in his voice as you move to kiss along his jawline and neck.

"If you want to," you say between kisses. You can already feel him growing hard as you grind your hips down against him, earning a groan from him, as well.

"Of course I do." He grabs you and moves you off of him, rolling over to hover over you in one swift movement. He smiles down at you before kissing you, moving his lips down your neck and to the collar of your sweater.

"This needs to come off," he says, grabbing the hem and pulling it up. You help him, pulling it over your head and tossing it to the side, then removing your bra. Your hands go straight for his sweater to remove it, as well. He brings his lips back down to your neck, trailing kisses across your collarbones and down across your breasts, biting and sucking the skin along the way. He continues to make his way down your body, kissing your stomach as he undoes your belt buckle.

You let out a quiet moan as he, after tugging off your pants, begins kissing the sensitive skin of your inner thighs. He starts rubbing you through your panties, his fingers working in gentle circles. You watch as he pulls away, grabbing the waistband of your panties and removing them before returning to his place between your legs. You spread them further for him, and he smirks up at you before putting his mouth on you.

His tongue works your clit and you feel him push two fingers into you. The pleasure builds inside of you as he continues at a perfect pace, and you know that you'll finish soon if he keeps it up. You reach down and wrap your fingers in his hair as you gasp his name.

"You like that?" he says between heavy breaths, looking up at you, "Keep moaning for me, darling, just like that."

Soon enough, he brings you to orgasm, and when he goes to climb back on top of you, you can see how hard he is through his pants.

"Let's get those off of you," you say, already working at unbuckling his belt.

Remus grins and gets off the bed, removing his pants and boxers. He lowers himself back on to you, kissing you as he teases your entrance with his tip. You wrap your legs around his waist when he finally pushes his dick inside of you, slowly, both of you groaning with pleasure as he does.

"You always feel so good," he whispers against your lips between kisses as he begins slow strokes, "You're so beautiful, Y/N."

He quickens his pace, going deep inside of you with each thrust. As he does so, you kiss each other hungrily, your hands moving from his hair, across his shoulders, and to his back, which you dig your fingernails into as the two of you edge closer and closer to orgasm.

"I'm close," you say through a choked gasp, as he buries his face in the crook of your neck.

"Cum for me, baby," he says against your skin, and soon after, you unravel with yet another orgasm, digging your fingernails even deeper into his back as you do so. He finishes after you, groaning with pleasure. He waits for a few seconds before pulling out, rolling over to lay next to you. You immediately curl into his side, and he wraps his arm around you, just as you were before. You close your eyes as you rest your head on his chest, feeling his pounding heartbeat.

The two of you lay in comfortable silence for a few moments, simply listening to each other's breathing. His fingers trail absentmindedly up and down your bare arm, and you wish that you could stay here forever. Any previous worries are far gone, far out of your mind. All you can think of now is Remus and the feeling of his bare skin against yours.

"I'm absolutely starving," he finally says, and you can't help but laugh, pushing yourself up to look at him. He returns your smile, his gaze happy and gentle, which is a relief to see.

"We just had lunch not that long ago," you point out.

Still smiling, he bites down on his lower lip. "What's your point?"

You laugh again and lean over, pecking his lips. "I suppose I could go for a snack myself. You want to get cleaned up and get down to the kitchens?" you suggest before kissing his lips lightly yet again.

"Sounds perfect," he says, pulling you into one, long, deep kiss before getting out of bed.

You watch him as he tugs his pants back on. While you wish that the rest of the school year could be like this, you know that's just not realistic. 

So, you're going to enjoy the holidays while you can: two weeks of stress-free bliss with your Remus.


	15. Chapter 15

The next few days pass similarly. As the days go by, the castle is covered in Christmas decorations, until finally, Christmas Day arrives. You wake up in Remus's arms, just as you have almost every day over the last week.

His arm is wrapped around your waist, your back pressed up against his chest. You hear his slow, steady breathing, and you close your eyes again, taking a moment to enjoy the comfort of being with him. You then roll over to face him, tucking your head under his chin and tracing some of the scars on his side. He stirs after a few minutes, his arm tightening around you in a sort of hug.

"Happy Christmas," he murmurs, kissing the top of your head.

"Happy Christmas to you," you say back.

You pull back, just enough to prop yourself up on your elbow to look at him. You reach out and brush some hair out of his eyes, to which he smiles.

"Want to head down to breakfast?" you ask quietly.

Remus sits up and glances over your shoulder, most likely at the clock on the nightstand. "We'll have to wait until lunch, now." He leans over and kisses your cheek before getting up off of the bed. You lay back and watch as he crosses the room, dressed in nothing but sweatpants, over to his trunk to find clothes for the day.

After a few minutes, you finally drag yourself out of bed too, although you'd be more than okay with never leaving it. Since you'd been staying the night with Remus pretty much every night since break started, you had brought clothes to keep in his room. 

You learned your lesson after the first night, when you had to put on your clothes from the day before and make your way across the castle to your room before anyone caught you. Of course, you hadn't been that lucky, and you'd run into McGonagall.

_She gave you the once-over, smirking slightly as she assessed your rumpled appearance._

_"Good morning, dear," she said, casually._

_"Good morning, Minerva," you replied, trying to match her casual tone, despite being rather caught off guard._

_"I'm assuming things have been resolved between you and Remus, then?"_

_You felt your entire face growing hot, and you nodded. She smiled, chuckling._

_"Good, good. I'll see you at breakfast, Y/N."_

As awkward as you felt about the encounter, you were beyond grateful that it wasn't Snape. And while you and Remus have kept your relationship quiet, you're sure that others on the staff have their suspicions.

After you both get dressed and ready for the day, you head to the Great Hall for lunch, to see that instead of the house tables being arranged like usual, they're pushed against the walls, to make room for a single table in the middle of the Hall. Dumbledore, McGonagall, Snape, Sprout, Flitwick, and Filch are already seated at one end, and three students at the other.

"Merry Christmas!" Dumbledore calls.

You and Remus reply as you take your seats. Remus sits down next to Flitwick, and you sit down next to him, across from Snape. You lift your gaze to see that he's already looking at you, so you smile politely. Since your last argument, you and Snape have slowly returned to being on civil terms. Then again, that might just be because due to classes being over, you haven't had to spend much time with him apart from meals. You suspect he'll have more to say to you about Remus once the beginning of the new term starts up again, but this time, you're not going to let him get to you. You know the true story now.

Next to arrive at the Great Hall are Harry, Hermione, and Ron. While the latter two have slight scowls on their faces, Harry appears to be happy, which is a nice change from usual. Shortly after them comes Trelawney, who you're surprised to see, considering she normally doesn't eat her meals in the Great Hall with everyone.

She announces that she's been crystal gazing, and you try to hold back a smile as you watch McGonagall roll her eyes. Remus coughs, and you turn to look at him, only to see that he's trying to stifle a laugh.

Remus then catches your eye and grins, making your heart flutter. You reach out under the table and grab his hand, interlocking your fingers and resting your hands on your knee. He rubs his thumb across the back of your hand as you listen to Trelawney talk about her crystal gazing some more, despite the rather obvious fact that no one is interested.

"Oh, and I saw something about you, Remus," Trelawney says, catching both you and Remus off guard, "if you would like to come take a look later."

Remus blanches. "Uh, maybe," he mutters, dropping his gaze. You can't help but wonder what Trelawney could have possibly seen, but you're not going to worry about it now. It's Christmas, after all.

After another hour or so of stuffing yourselves with the assortments of good food, people start getting up to leave. You and Remus end up leaving around the same time as Ron and Harry, so you decide to make conversation with them as you walk with them towards the Gryffindor common room. 

"Hi boys," you greet them, "how's Christmas gone for you two so far?"

"Harry got a Firebolt!" Ron blurts excitedly.

Now, you're no expert on brooms, but you do know that the Firebolt is an extremely good - and extremely _expensive_ \- broom. Perfect for a talented Seeker like Harry.

"Oh, wow, Harry, that's fantastic," you say, smiling at him, at the same time that Remus asks, "Who got it for you?"

The boys exchange a look.

"We don't know, actually," Harry admits, "There was nothing attached to it."

"Yeah," Ron adds, "We've been trying to figure out who it could be from, but we've had no luck."

You look at Remus, who pushes his tongue against his cheek as he gazes at Harry.

"Have you spoken with Professor McGonagall?" he asks Harry, whose face falls slightly at the suggestion, "You can't be too careful..."

The four of you reach the staircase that leads up to the Gryffindor common room and stop at the bottom of it.

"Why? Who do you think gave it to me?" Harry questions Remus, almost defensively.

Before Remus has a chance to answer, you hear footsteps coming up the hall from behind you. The four of you swivel around to see McGonagall walking towards you, followed by a rather stressed-looking Hermione, who's playing with the hem of her sweater nervously.

McGonagall nods in acknowledgment towards you and Remus before directing her attention to Harry.

"Potter," she says, "May I see the Firebolt?"

Harry raises his eyebrows in surprise at her request, and simply nods, glancing at Remus before turning and heading up the stairs to the common room. Ron hesitantly follows him, McGonagall and Hermione following their lead. Remus watches them walk up the stairs for another moment, his lips pursed tightly, before turning away.

"What is it?" you ask. You can't even begin to guess what he might be thinking, per usual.

He shakes his head ever so slightly, looking down at you as the two of you walk in the direction of his room.

"I don't know. My first thought was Black, but I...I can't imagine why he'd..." He trails off, looking away. You reach out and take his hand.

You have to admit, it crossed your mind for a split second earlier, but you don't see how it would make sense. After all, Black just broke out of Azkaban, meaning he wouldn't have any money, and even if he somehow did, he wouldn't be able to show his face in a public place without being sent back to jail. And after all, of all things, why would he send a broom to Harry? What good would that do for him?

"Minerva is checking it out, so even if there's something weird going on, she'll have it covered. So there's no need to worry," you try to reassure him.

"Mhm," he murmurs, not sounding or looking convinced as he continues to gaze straight ahead, avoiding your eyes. As you reach his room, you pull your hand away from his, instead wrapping your arm around his waist in a sort of half-hug as he reaches for the door handle.

"Can I at least try to take your mind off of it? Or would you rather go crystal gaze with Trelawney?" you ask.

He looks down at you, a grin making its way on to his face as he pushes open the door.

"I think you know the answer to that one."

You grab his sleeve, pulling him fully into the classroom. Once the door is shut behind you two, you reach up for his collar, pulling him down into a deep, slow kiss. His hands come up to cup your face gently, but you pull back, ever so slightly, just enough to speak.

"You better go then. She'll be waiting on you."

Remus grabs your jaw suddenly and pulls you back into a kiss, this one rougher than the last, leaving you wet and immediately wanting more when he pulls away.

"If you say so," he says, stepping away and smirking.

"Wait-" you say, closing the gap that he created, reaching out and wrapping your fingers in the fabric of his sweater, pulling him towards you. He chuckles and cups your face with his hand, caressing your cheek with his thumb. He smirks down at you again, his eyes searching your face.

"That's what I thought."


	16. Chapter 16

Remus kisses you again, grabbing your hips and backing you up across the room as he does. You only stop once your back hits his desk. Remus slides his hands down over your ass and to the backs of your thighs to lift you up slightly so that you're sitting on the desk. You both pull away for a moment to catch your breath, and in that moment you lift your legs and wrap them around his waist, pulling him closer to you.

You place your hands on his belt, quickly unbuckling it and unzipping his pants. You palm his bulge, to which he groans against your lips and bucks his hips against your hand. You then tease along the waistband of his boxers, your fingers playing with the elastic, and you know that you're driving him mad.

"C'mon, Y/N," he groans, dipping his head to start kissing your neck, which makes you even more wet than you already were as his warm lips find your skin.

But, you're dragged out of your own little world by a sharp knock at the door, which makes you jump slightly.

"Of course," Remus mutters against your neck before pulling away. You smile at him apologetically as he adjusts his pants and buckles his belt again, shaking his head at you with a small, regretful smile on his face before turning and striding across the room, towards the door, with his hands in his pockets. You slide off the desk, smoothing down your hair and sweater before following him. You hope that it's not completely obvious as to what you've been up to to whoever's on the other side of the door.

Remus looks at you once more over his shoulder before he opens the door, revealing Snape, whose arms are folded over his chest. He looks at Remus briefly, a hard, calculating expression on his face, before his gaze lands on you and your undoubtedly flushed cheeks. He looks you up and down once before turning his eyes back to Remus.

"Minerva wants to see us in her office. Immediately." Without waiting for a response, Snape turns away with a swish of his robes, making his way back down the hall. Remus looks over his shoulder at you and shrugs before stepping aside, holding out his arm.

"After you," he says. You pass him, out of the room, and you wait until he shuts the door behind him before heading down the hall, side by side, in the direction of McGonagall's classroom. You suspect that this has something to do with the broom, but you can't possibly guess why she'd want you, Snape, and Remus there. You know that all three of you know little to nothing about brooms.

You decide to voice your thoughts to Remus, leaning over and talking quietly to him, as if someone is going to pass by and overhear your conversation, despite the castle being almost empty.

"Most likely," he agrees, your hands bumping against one another as you walk, "though I'm not sure why, either." His grim expression is back, as his mind is back to Black and the Firebolt, and just after you'd had him distracted.

People in this school really just have the worst timing.

"Maybe Minerva ought to go crystal gaze with Trelawney instead. She might have more answers," you joke, trying to lift his spirits at least a little. It seems to be successful, because you see the corner of his mouth lift in a small smile, which makes you smile, too. You reach over the small gap, taking his hand in yours.

"You're so right. I can't imagine why Minerva didn't think of that herself," he replies, matching your sarcastic tone as you turn the corner, McGonagall's office now in sight. Snape is no where to be seen, so you suspect that he must already be there, despite leaving practically at the same time as you and Remus. He must have really wanted to get away from the two of you that badly that he practically fled to McGonagall's room.

Remus looks down at you and smiles before letting go of your hand to open the door to the classroom. You still see the stress in his eyes, and you hope that you'll have time to actually get to take his mind off of it later, like you were trying to do before you were interrupted.

He holds open the door for you, letting you go in first. Sure enough, McGonagall is standing at her desk, where the Firebolt is laying. Snape is standing at the other side of the desk, looking down at the broom as well, but when you enter, they both turn and look up at you.

"Ah, Y/N, Remus, come in," McGonagall says hurriedly, "I'm sorry to interrupt any Christmas activities, I just wanted to discuss the matter of the Firebolt that Potter received this morning."

"No need for apologies, Minerva," Snape replies before either you or Remus can, "After all, they weren't busy, were they?" He quirks an eyebrow at you, as if he knows exactly what he interrupted, and you're sure that he does. You wouldn't be surprised if it's fun for him: interrupting you and Remus. You resist the urge to roll your eyes, instead, smiling sweetly in return. You wish you could see Remus's expression, but he's standing a bit behind you.

"Not at all," you say.

"Is there something wrong with it?" Remus ignores Snape's smug expression, instead addressing his question to McGonagall as he steps forward. "Is it jinxed?"

"I'm not sure myself. What I do know is that we are going to have to wait at least until Rolanda returns at the beginning of the new term so that she can strip it down, along with Filius, but..." McGonagall trails off, running her fingers along the smooth, sleek handle of the broom. "Granger was the one to suggest it, and I dare say that I agree..."

"That Black sent it," Remus finishes, his tone unreadable.

McGonagall looks up at Remus steadily for a moment before nodding. You feel as if they're having some sort of private understanding between them, something that you and Snape are being completely left out of, but you can't imagine what it is.

You risk a glance over at Snape, only to see that his eyes are narrowed and trained on Remus.

" _Well_ ," he drawls, earning both McGonagall's and Remus's attention, "with this broom plan foiled, what would Black's next steps be? Lupin?"

Remus raises an eyebrow, appearing unbothered by Snape's subtle finger-pointing. You feel completely useless, unsure of what to say or do in this entire situation, so you stay silent, simply glancing back and forth between Remus and Snape.

"I have no better idea than you would, Severus," Remus says coolly.

"Seems odd," Snape retorts immediately, and you watch as Remus's eyes narrow slightly, "considering all those years you spent, inseparable. One would think, Lupin, that you would have the most useful insight, yet you haven't offered us a thing. Why is that?"

"Enough, both of you," McGonagall says sharply, looking between the two men as if she were scolding two misbehaving students, "Severus, that was years ago. If Remus had any information that was vital to Black being caught, there is no doubt in my mind that he would inform us. Right, Remus?"

"Correct," Remus says without missing a beat, but his voice is strained. You're not sure if you're the only one that catches that, but you keep your mouth shut. You're probably thinking too much into things.

"As for next steps," McGonagall continues, lowering herself into her seat, "we still need to be alert. I do believe that if he was able to get past the dementors and into the castle once, he will do it again. Of course, I'm going to discuss this all with Albus, as well." She looks between the three of you expectantly, but when Remus stays silent, staring at the broom, and Snape stays silent, staring down Remus, you decide to finally speak up.

"Agreed, Minevra. We'll be careful."

"Good, Y/N. Thank you." She pauses. "You all are free to leave."

Although you didn't do anything wrong, you still feel like a student leaving a scolding as you file out of the classroom, followed by Remus and Snape. Without a word, Snape turns and walks away swiftly and silently down the hall, leaving you and Remus standing in front of the closed door.

You're not sure what to say or do, so thankfully, Remus speaks first, but when you turn towards him, he avoids your eyes.

"Do you mind if I go back alone for now? I just need some time to think," he says stiffly.

Your heart sinks, but you're not going to push him. Instead, you push yourself up on your tiptoes to kiss his cheek.

"Of course I don't mind. I'll be in my room if you'd like to talk," you say, softly.

Remus looks over at you for the first time, offering you a small smile. His expression is completely guarded.

"Thank you. I'll be by later, I promise, I just..."

"I get it," you jump in quickly, "I understand."

You don't, not really, but you're not going to let him know that.

He smiles again, but it doesn't reach his eyes. He leans forward, kissing your forehead before turning and walking away down the hall, leaving you alone, still standing in front of McGonagall's door. You suppose that you could go back in, to talk about everything you don't understand, but what would be the use of that?

So, you choose to start heading back to your room, where you told Remus you'd be, and just hope that he comes by sooner than later.

Happy Christmas to you.


	17. Chapter 17

Remus finally shows up to your room after a little while, acting as if nothing happened. You don't question it, and you try not to think about it too much as the two of you spend the rest of the day together.

The next week, thankfully, passes without any other incident. Remus goes about acting as if nothing happened, and Snape goes back to simply glaring at him over meals. You, on the other hand, are a bit on edge, though you suppose that's a usual thing nowadays. 

You have quite a bit on your mind as the next year arrives, and with it, all of the students who had gone home for the holidays. While you had enjoyed the empty castle, it's nice to hear the familiar sounds of loud laughter and running footsteps in the halls between classes. 

Snape keeps you busy: busier than you were last term. You're gradually getting more and more involved with his classes, which means more work to grade and more planning for lessons. Remus, on the other hand, is giving Harry Patronus lessons outside of class time, and between all of your respective responsibilities, there's little time to spend together that isn't at meals or late at night.

Soon enough, the entire school is preparing for the next Quidditch match, which is Gryffindor versus Ravenclaw. But the day before, what the students are buzzing about isn't the match itself, but instead, Harry's Firebolt.

"Harry got his broom back?" you ask Severus between classes.

"Yes," he says, sounding as uninterested as possible, "Apparently there was nothing wrong with it."

That's unusual to you, because while you're obviously glad that Harry's Firebolt wasn't jinxed, you can't imagine why Sirius Black would send him a perfectly fine broom. Or maybe it wasn't Black at all, and you all were overthinking it.

Either way, as the days pass with no further sign of Black, your nerves ease. You're ready for a Quidditch match, and you're looking forward to seeing Harry on his brand new broom.

The day of the match, the weather is perfect. Though it's a bit chilly, considering it's February, the sky is clear and the sun is bright: nothing like Gryffindor's last match. As you're bundling up in your room, preparing to head out to the pitch, there's a knock on your bedroom door. You finish wrapping your scarf around your neck as you walk across the room, pulling open the door to reveal Remus. While he's slightly paler than usual, and the bags under his eyes darker considering the full moon is about five days away, when he smiles at you, you feel your stomach erupt into the familiar butterflies that you always feel with him.

"Hello, darling," he greets you, leaning forward and kissing your forehead. "All ready to go?"

"All ready," you confirm, kissing him lightly on the lips before stepping out of the room and shutting the door behind you.

The two of you haven't spoken about the broom or Snape's accusations any further after Christmas, apart from a casual comment last night about how it hadn't been jinxed. After that, the topic was dropped. You're not sure how you feel about the whole thing, but you've pushed it to the back of your mind, which seems to be the easiest way to go about things lately.

The two of you walk side by side out of the school and down to the Quidditch pitch, at the same time that most of the students are, too. There's an infectious air of excitement, especially from the Ravenclaws and Gryffindors, who are donned from head to toe in their respective house colors.

"Professor Lupin! Miss Y/L/N!"

You recognize the voice to be Ron Weasley's before turning around. He runs up to you and Remus, a wide, excited grin on his face. You exchange a small smile with Remus. Neither of you have seen Ron in a good mood over the last few days, which you learned, thanks to Harry, that it was because of an incident with his rat and Hermione's cat. But now, he looks more lively than ever.

"Harry got his Firebolt back, didja hear? Ravenclaw doesn't stand a chance now!"

Remus chuckles. "I think you're right, Ron, but don't tell anyone I said that." He smiles at Ron. "I'm supposed to be unbiased."

Ron grins, his cheeks flushed from the cold. "I won't. Look! They're walking out to the pitch already. See ya!" He bolts off towards the stands before you or Remus can respond.

You lean over to Remus. "You think he's excited?"

Remus laughs and, to your surprise, takes your hand. The two of you have never shown affection in front of anyone before, apart from holding hands under the table at meals. You grin at him and squeeze his hand as you walk the rest of the way over to the stands, only letting go of each other's hands as you walk up the stairs to take your seats, just as the match is about to start.

Lee Jordan, the commentator, starts out by describing the Firebolt instead of the match, which only succeeds in annoying McGonagall. You and Remus watch, trying to hold back your smiles, as she snaps at him every now and again for getting distracted.

"There it is!" You point at the tiny, golden Snitch fluttering by the Gryffindor goal posts. Both Harry and Ravenclaw's Seeker, Cho Chang, notice it too, both of them flying towards it, low on their brooms. Cho swerves quickly and cuts off Harry, earning a groan from the Gryffindors.

Remus reaches out for your hand again, holding it in his lap. You smile and scoot closer to him so that your arms are pressed together. You can picture Snape's look of disgust from his seat behind the two of you, which makes you smile.

You watch as Cho and Harry dive for the Snitch, Harry just barely in the lead. You watch as Cho looks away from the Snitch, Harry looking up, too, and you follow their gaze to see three figures standing on the sidelines in black, hooded cloaks.

Before you can even realize what's happening, a silvery figure is coming out of the end of Harry's wand, soaring towards the three figures. It appears to be some sort of large animal, but you can't quite tell from where you're sitting. You swell with pride at Harry's success, considering Remus had told you he was having some difficulties during their lessons, but as the Patronus reaches the figures, you realize they aren't dementors at all, but instead, students.

More specifically, Slytherin students, which you see when their dark hoods fall back as they scramble to get away from the Patronus: Flint, Crabbe, Goyle, and Malfoy.

You hear the crowd erupt into cheers, and when you turn back to the match, you realize that you missed Harry catching the Snitch. He's on the ground now, or at least you think he is. You can't see him, but you assume that he's the figure in the middle of the Gryffindor Quidditch team hug that's happening. You glance over at Remus, who's gazing down at the pitch with a small, proud smile on his face and a faraway look in his eyes.

You squeeze his hand, which you're still holding, breaking him out of his daze.

"You did it," you say quietly as your fellow teachers begin to stand up around you to head down to the pitch to congratulate the team.

Remus shakes his head, looking at you, still smiling softly.

"That was all him. I was just there to guide him along the way. Although, I would've liked to see it work against _actual_ dementors..."

McGonagall overhears this and shakes her head angrily, standing up from beside the two of you.

"Those boys are going to be in detention for the next _month_ , pulling a stunt like that," she grumbles as she walks past. You and Remus exchange smiles before following her down, past some moping Ravenclaws, to where Harry is standing.

"That was quite the Patronus," Remus says to Harry, who turns his head and smiles up at Remus excitedly. This is the happiest you think you've ever seen Harry.

"It was," you agree, "and congratulations on the win, Harry."

"C'mon, Harry!" yells a voice from across the pitch. It's one of the Weasley twins: Fred, you think.

"Yeah, Harry! It's time to _celebrate_!" calls George.

Harry thanks you and Remus before running off. There's no doubt in your mind that there's going to be quite the party in the Gryffindor common room tonight.

You shiver slightly from the chilly breeze as you watch the Gryffindor Quidditch team walking together, all laughing at something. Remus wraps an arm around you, pulling you to his side. He's somehow always warm, which is perfect in situations like this.

"Want to head back inside?" he asks. You nod and he takes his arm away, but stays close by your side as the two of you start on the long path that leads you back to the school. You're in a considerably better mood than you have been recently, and it seems like Remus is as well, which is a nice change. You can only hope things stay like this for at least a little while longer.

The Gryffindors are nowhere to be seen for the rest of the day, no doubt celebrating in their common room. You and Remus turn in early after dinner, heading back to his room for a relaxing evening, which is, again, something the two of you haven't gotten in a while.

Remus breaks out his chess set, so the two of you sit across from each other on his bed, cross legged, the chess board between you. You've never been very good at chess, but of course, Remus is great at it. You watch as a smirk plays on his lips every time you make a move, as he calculates his own next move. Soon enough, he wins, which you expected.

"I let you win," you say, pushing the chess board aside and climbing on to his lap. He grins at you, sliding his hands under the hem of your sweater and resting them on your waist.

"Oh, of course," he replies, his voice barely audible as he dips his head, lightly kissing your neck. You tilt your head, allowing him better access. He takes one hand out from under your sweater to cup the other side of your neck, holding you in place as he sucks and bites your skin.

Before long, each of you have removed each other's clothes, which lay strewn all over the floor. He shifts to lay back, and you adjust yourself to position yourself over his dick, but your foot bumps against something, and you hear a _crash_ from behind you.

Remus starts laughing. "The chess set," he says, his laugh quickly being cut off by a moan as you lower yourself on to him. His hands slide around to rest on your ass, looking up at you with a lust-filled gaze as you begin to move your hips.

"Fuck, Y/N," he groans, tilting his head back and pushing his hips up into you as you begin to bounce, "Just like that, you feel so fucking good."

You feel your legs growing tired, but Remus is close, and so are you. Soon enough, he releases, and you continue to move and grind on him until you finish shortly after. You climb off of him, leaning over to kiss him before heading off to the bathroom.

For the first time since term started, you've had a day that has been great from start to finish. And now, you get to curl up and fall asleep in Remus's arms. Absolutely nothing could ruin your good mood now.

After you finish cleaning up, you head back out to the bedroom. You go into Remus's trunk and rifle through it until you find a t-shirt, which you tug over your head before climbing into bed with him. 

"C'mere, beautiful," he says. He wraps his arms around you, pulling you against his chest and presses kisses to the top of your head.

Your heart swells with happiness, and there's no place you'd rather be than here with Remus. You feel like there's a lot of unsaid, deep emotions between the two of you, but you're both fine with things being unsaid. And while you know there's things about his past that he hasn't told you, you know that he's been through a lot, to say the least, and you feel confident in the fact that he'll tell you more when he's ready.

Before long, after hushed, half-asleep conversation, Remus drifts off. You feel yourself falling asleep, too, listening to the steady thud of his heartbeat.

But it feels like you've just fallen asleep when you hear loud, urgent knocking at the door. You sit up, startled, your heart pounding. It's quiet for a moment, and you think that maybe you imagined it, but then it comes again: three urgent knocks.

Remus, who you didn't even realize was awake, too, lets go of you and gets up out of bed, grabbing his wand off his nightstand and his pants off the floor, which he tugs on on his way to the door.

You glance over at the clock before getting out of bed, too. It's just about three in the morning. Who the bloody hell is pounding at the door at three in the morning? You swear to Merlin, if it's Snape-

Remus, holding his wand securely in his right hand, opens the door with his left. To your surprise, there stands McGonagall in her nightclothes, arms crossed over her chest. You can't quite read the expression on her face, but you know that whatever you're about to hear isn't good.

You cross the room, holding your own wand and feeling exposed in nothing but Remus's t-shirt that falls to your mid-thigh. You stop at Remus's shoulder.

"Minerva, what's going on?" Remus asks, his voice low and thick with sleep.

She shakes her head and looks between the two of you.

"It's Black," she says, and you feel your blood run cold, "He was in Potter's dorm tonight."

You feel Remus stiffen next to you, so you place a comforting hand on his back. 

"Get dressed," she continues, turning away and looking back at the two of you over her shoulder, "We need to search the castle."


	18. Chapter 18

After you put on your pants and Remus pulls on a sweater, the two of you head to the Great Hall to meet the rest of the staff. You may still be half-asleep, but your mind is racing with questions. How the hell did Black get into the castle _again_ , and this time, not only into the Gryffindor common room, but Harry's room? Before she left, McGonagall assured you that everyone was alright, just that Ron is shaken up a bit, because he was the one who saw Black, who was apparently standing over Ron's bed with a knife.

You and Remus approach the group, coming up to stand between Flitwick and Snape. Everyone looks equally as concerned and tired as you feel, all still dressed in their nightclothes, as well.

"We'll split up, and for the sake of time, everyone will cover the same areas that they did last time Black broke in. We'll meet back here afterwards," Dumbledore says, looking around at the group. You look up at Remus; last time, the two of you were together, covering the fourth floor, which also happened to be when he confessed to you that he's a werewolf.

You and Remus silently make your way up the stairs to the fourth floor, starting down the long corridor.

"He's most likely already out of the castle by this point," Remus says, stopping suddenly in his tracks. He turns and starts walking out on the balcony, peering over the ledge. You follow him, not quite sure what he's thinking. You're certainly not dressed for the weather in your sweatpants and Remus's t-shirt, so you step closer to Remus, shivering, as you look out over the grounds yourself. It's still dark out, so you can't see much, besides some animal by the edge of the Forbidden Forest. A dog, maybe?

When you look up at Remus, you swear that he looks considerably more pale than he was before, but then again, maybe it's just the lighting.

"How do you think he's getting past the dementors?" you ask, simply because it's something you've thought about, but you can't seem to figure it out. After all, that's the whole reason they're _here:_ to catch Sirius Black. And if they can't even do that, twice now, why can't Dumbledore just finally get rid of them?

"I don't know," Remus snaps, much to your surprise. You watch as he turns, avoiding your eyes as he walks back into the corridor. Did you miss something?

"I wasn't... I wasn't trying to accuse you of anything," you say, quietly, once you join Remus back in the corridor, "It was just a question that I've been thinking about myself."

He sighs, sounding somewhat defeated, looking over at you.

"I know, I just... I'm sorry," he says, clearly exasperated, "I suppose I'm just finally tired of Severus finding every opportunity to point fingers at me. But I know you didn't mean it like that."

You cross the gap that separates the two of you and wrap your arms around his waist, leaning your head against him. He wraps his arms around your shoulders, kissing the top of your head. You wish there was something you could do, but you suspect that the only thing that would make everything better would be Black finally being caught, which is apparently much harder than everyone thought it was going to be.

You just can't wrap your mind around it. After all, _everyone_ knows what he looks like, thanks to the posters with his face on it everywhere you look. So how the hell has he not been found yet?

"We're not getting very much done," you say, pulling away from Remus just enough to be able to look up at him. A small smile appears on his face, but there's still a very distant look in his eyes.

"Like I said, he's definitely out of the castle by now. He most likely left the moment Ron woke up."

"About that," you say, pulling away so that the two of you can continue slowly down the corridor, "I find that odd. Why was he over Ron's bed, and not Harry's?"

Remus puts his hands in his pants pockets, appearing deep in thought. When he doesn't reply, you continue, thinking out loud.

"It just doesn't make any sense. And I can't imagine how terrifying it must have been for Ron, to wake up and see that. Right after his rat goes missing, too, which he's already upset about. I can't imagine what that would feel like, for the pet you've had for twelve years to go missing." You had talked to Harry one day after class, after noticing very obvious tension between him, Ron, and Hermione. He had explained the whole situation with Hermione telling McGonagall about Harry's Firebolt and getting it taken away, which of course, he'd eventually gotten it back, but within the last few days, Ron's rat had gone missing, and the boys both thought that Hermione's cat had killed it, so they weren't on speaking terms.

And now, the mass murderer that's on the loose shows up in their room, as the cherry on top.

"What did you say?" Remus says abruptly.

You look over at him, raising your eyebrows. "Which part?"

There's a weird look on his face, somewhere between confusion and panic, but you can't possibly imagine why.

"The part about Ron's rat. How long did he have it?"

"Oh," you say, carefully watching Remus's expression as you repeat what you said, "The family had him for twelve years, I guess, which is weird, I know. I don't know what they've been feeding him to make him live for nearly four times the average life expectancy for a rat, but... What?"

Your attempt at a joke fails as you see Remus purse his lips tightly and turn his face away from you, the gears clearly turning in his head. You can't figure out what the hell is going on with him, but you hope that he'll tell you, sooner than later.

"Nothing," he says, his voice strained, "You're just... You're right. That is weird."

As you reach the end of the corridor, the topic is dropped, but you know that this is going to be consuming your thoughts until you get answers from Remus. What about a possibly dead rat could shake him up so much?

You don't speak again until you reach the Great Hall. The only person back is Snape, who's standing outside the Hall, his eyebrow quirking when he sees the two of you approaching.

"No sign of him," you say.

"Hm." Snape keeps his eyes trained on Remus, but Remus's expression is completely unreadable now, any of the previous stress or confusion on his face gone. You couldn't possibly be more lost than you are right now.

Soon enough, the rest of the staff arrives, nobody else having seen anything either, just as you were expecting. You part ways then, you and Remus starting back towards his room. He's still silent, but you don't push it, no matter how curious and confused you are at his behavior.

All you say is, "Are you alright?" as the two of you climb back into bed for the few hours that you still have until breakfast. You doubt that you'll be able to fall back asleep with all that's on your mind, but there's not much else to do. Especially now that Remus is clearly somewhere else, far away from you.

"Yeah," he says, offering you a tight-lipped smile as he holds his arm out to you, "There's just a lot on my mind, with tonight and the full moon being soon, but I'm alright. Are you?"

Well, for one, you're confused, to say the very least. You cuddle against him, his arm wrapping around you, as you let your mind replay the events of the night. You decide to just follow his lead and go the easy route, so you simply say:

"Yeah, I'm alright."


	19. Chapter 19

Per usual, the next day, Remus is back to acting as if nothing happened the night before. But there's not much time to think about it, because you spend the day working with the rest of the staff on new and improved security measures to ensure that another break in doesn't happen.

However, despite everything, you really doubt that it's going to work, though you don't admit that to anyone. But, you can tell that Remus is thinking the same thing. If the dementors can't even track down Black, what good is anything else going to do?

You ended up learning that Neville was partially responsible for the whole mess, due to him losing his list of passwords for the Gryffindor common room, which Black found once he'd gotten into the castle. McGonagall was absolutely furious, and while you understand the danger, you can't help but feel bad for Neville.

On the Monday morning after the break-in, you watch as the post comes in, and with it, a familiar looking red envelope, which is dropped right in front of Neville.

"Must be from his grandmother," Remus murmurs, leaning over to you, his eyes on the Howler as well. The two of you watch as Neville grabs ahold of the envelope, his face nearly as red as it, and sprints out of the Hall. 

However, it's not much use. You wince as hear the booming voice of Neville's grandmother escaping the Howler, shrieking about how ashamed she is.

You exchange a look with Remus. You know that he, like yourself, has grown to like Neville quite a bit, and both of you have tried to take him under your wing as much as you can over the last several months of school. You, especially, since you get a first hand view of how Snape treats him.

Over the next week, there's a bit of distant between you and Remus, even after the full moon passes. There's no doubt in your mind that it's because of whatever was going through his head the night of Black's break-in, though you still have no idea what that was about.

That Saturday, there's another Hogsmeade trip. You catch Neville looking rather disappointed at breakfast; part of his punishment was that he was banned from Hogsmeade for the remainder of the school year. Maybe he and Harry can spend the day together. They seem to get along well enough.

After breakfast, as the students are leaving for Hogsmeade, you and Remus decide to go on a walk, considering he's recovered since the full moon. It's a beautifully sunny day, and not all that cold. You find yourselves walking down to the greenhouses, and as you do, you reach out to hold Remus's hand. He smiles over at you, and you feel the sudden urge to ask about what's going on the past week.

Before you gather up the courage to do so, Remus looks over at you, a small smile still tugging at the corners of his mouth, his hazel eyes bright in the sunlight.

"What is it?" he asks, "You look like you want to say something."

"I just want to know where you've been this last week," you admit after a moment of hesitation, "I know you said you're alright, but after the break-in... I don't know. You've been distant."

Remus's smile falters, and you mentally curse yourself for bringing it up.

"I know I have," he says, "and I'm sorry. I just can't help but be reminded of the past when these things happen."

You offer him a sympathetic smile as the two of you stop by the greenhouses and turn to face each other. You look out, past him, at the Forbidden Forest, and you swear you see something moving, just behind the first row of trees. Then again, you're probably just imagining things.

"I figured. I'm sorry." You think about his odd reaction to you telling him about Ron's rat, but you'll leave that be. For now, that is. "Is there anything I can do?"

Remus reaches out, gently grabbing your forearms and pulling you to him. He wraps his arms around you, leaning down slightly to kiss your forehead, which you adore. It's probably your favorite thing about him being so tall.

"No," he replies, answering your question, "I don't believe so. But thank you, darling. Really."

You smile to yourself and lean your head against him, gazing out into the forest again. Your smile soon fades from your face as you squint, seeing something moving again. Your whole body stiffens in Remus's arms as you see an animal emerge ever so slightly from the trees, just enough so that you can tell what it is: a large, scruffy-looking black dog. You know that there are a lot of magical creatures that live in the forest, but _dogs_?

"What?" Remus asks, feeling your physical reaction. He looks down, only to see that you're staring over his shoulder and off into the forest, so he turns, just in time to see the dog disappear back into the darkness of the forest.

"That was weird, was it not?" you ask. The dog had stared at you as if it was trying to tell you something, as if it were human in a way.

"Remus?" you say when he doesn't answer and doesn't turn back around right away to look at you. "Remus, what's wrong?"

When he finally turns back around, it looks as if he's seen a ghost.

"Nothing," he says quickly, offering you a smile that doesn't reach his eyes, "I'm not sure what that was exactly, but let's get back inside. Just to be safe, alright?"

He doesn't wait for an answer, instead wrapping his arm around you and leading you back up the path to the school. Maybe you'll do some research later and try to figure out what that was. There was no way it was a regular dog. Why would a regular dog just be hanging out in the Forbidden Forest?

When you get back into the castle, Remus stops and looks down at you.

"I'm going to run to the bathroom. I'll be right back."

You watch as he walks away from you down the hall, his footsteps quick, running his fingers through his hair. You just stand there, not quite sure what to think.

Thankfully, you're not left alone with your thoughts for long. You hear a noise from behind you, as if something heavy were moving. You turn around just in time to see none other than Harry Potter jumping out from behind the statue of the one-eyed witch, his cheeks red and his chest rising and falling heavily, as if he were just running.

"Harry?" you ask. He freezes once he sees you, opening his mouth to offer some sort of explanation as to why he just emerged from a statue instead of being like his common room like he should have been, but before he can, the two of you are joined by yet another.

Snape stops, looking between you and Harry with a smug smile on his face.

"Potter, just the person I was looking for. Come with me to my office. Now." Snape turns his gaze on you, raising an eyebrow. "And Y/N. What a surprise to see you without Lupin, for once. Join us, will you?"

You suppose you don't really have the option to say no, so you join Harry in following Snape to his office, hoping that Remus will figure out where you are sooner than later and come save you from whatever you're about to witness.

You catch Harry's eye as you walk behind Snape, raising an eyebrow at him as if to say, _What did you do?_

He grimaces guiltily, so you make a mental note to go back and check out what's behind that one-eyed witch statue later.

Once you're in Snape's office, Harry sits at the desk across from Snape, and you lean against the wall, watching.

"What were you doing in Hogsmeade, Potter?" Snape asks, his tone cold. You watch as Harry very clearly attempts to keep a neutral expression.

"I wasn't in Hogsmeade."

"Then tell me, Potter, why Mr. Malfoy just came to inform me that he saw you with Mr. Weasley by the Shrieking Shack?"

Harry makes the mistake of shifting his gaze to you for merely a split second, but just long enough that it catches Snape's attention. Snape slowly turns to face you, his hands gripping the arms of his chair as if he's holding on for dear life.

"Y/N? Do you know something that I should be aware of?"

"I was with Remus, Severus, so no. _However,_ " you say, glancing at Harry, whose eyes are wide, as if he's terrified that you're going to rat him out about what you saw with the statue, "I saw him heading to Gryffindor Tower after breakfast. So I'm sure this is all just a big misunderstanding on Mr. Malfoy's part."

Snape narrows his eyes at you, and you know that you gave him the exact opposite of what he wanted to hear. You suppose that's a usual thing, though.

"Turn out your pockets, Potter," Snape suddenly snaps, turning to face Harry again, " _Now_."

You can see the reluctance in Harry's actions as he does so, and while your suspicions are confirmed that he was definitely in Hogsmeade when you see a bag from Zonko's in one of his hands, your attention is drawn to the blank piece of parchment he holds in the other.

"What is that?" he snaps again, pointing to the parchment.

"Spare bit of parchment," Harry says, "I was working on an essay for Professor Lupin-"

"Let Miss Y/L/N see it, then."

You step forward, taking the parchment from Harry and turning it over in your hands. It looks old and worn: too old and worn to just be spare parchment from an essay, but it's completely blank.

"So?"

You raise your eyes slowly to look at Snape, still clutching the parchment.

"Give me a _minute_ , Severus."

You turn your gaze to Harry as you slowly take your wand out of your back pocket, who's doing an awfully admirable job at appearing calm, although you can see the panic in his eyes.

" _Revelio_ ," you whisper, tapping your wand against the parchment. Sure enough, black ink begins to appear on the surface, as if someone was writing on it over your shoulder. Your eyes widen as you take in the words, stifling a laugh behind the hand that's not holding the parchment.

" _What?_ " Snape snarls, "Read it, Y/N. I don't have all day."

You hold back a smile as best as you can and clear your throat before you begin reading exactly what is written on the parchment.

" _Mr. Prongs would like to offer his greetings to Miss Y/L/N, but would also like her to pass on a message to Professor Snape_.

 _Mr. Padfoot seconds the message, and would like to tell Professor Snape to keep his disgustingly large, greasy nose out of others' business_."

You pause, and you can tell without looking up from the parchment that Snape is fuming.

" _Mr. Moony offers his compliments to Miss Y/L/N and would like to let her know that she looks very nice today, but he wholeheartedly agrees with the message to Professor Snape._

 _Mr. Wormtail would like to bid farewell to Professor Snape, as well as remind him that showers exist_."

You offer the parchment to Snape, who snatches it immediately out of your hand, his face twisted in rage, just as you expected. You exchange a look with Harry, who looks equal parts horrified and amused.

With the absolute perfect timing comes a knock on the door, to which Snape says loudly, "Come in."

In walks Remus, who looks at you, then Harry, Snape, and back to you. He raises a quizzical eyebrow, mouthing, _What is this?_

"Lupin. Just the person I wanted to see," Snape says through gritted teeth. He holds the parchment out to Remus, who crosses the room to take it from him. As soon as the parchment is in his hands, the confused expression fades completely, and he momentarily lifts his eyes to you before looking back over at Snape. You suspect that he recognizes whatever this is, and knows just as well as you do that it isn't a Zonko's product.

"It's clearly a Zonko's product, Severus. A gift from Ron, I'm sure. Is that all you wanted me to tell you?"

"I'm sure," Snape says coolly, leaning back in his seat and folding his arms over his chest, glaring up at Remus, who turns the parchment over in his hands thoughtfully. The two of you exchange yet another brief glance, but you can't read his expression.

"But perhaps, just in case," Remus says, sounding as calm and collected as ever, "I ought to take it back to my office to inspect it." He folds up the parchment, shoving it into the pocket of his coat. He smiles pleasantly at Snape, who's still glaring at him in return.

"I'll even see Harry back to Gryffindor Tower. Y/N? Would you like to come with?" Remus looks at you expectantly.

"Of course." You say goodbye to Snape before following Harry and Remus out of the room, but he doesn't respond. You have to jog a bit to catch up to Harry and Remus, both of whom are walking quite quickly. Instead of Gryffindor Tower, you find yourself at Remus's classroom. He shuts the door behind the three of you, turning to Harry, a blazing look in his eyes that you haven't seen before.

"How did you get this?" Remus lifts up the parchment.

"Actually," he continues, "I don't want to know. But what I want _you_ to know is that you should have turned this in the minute it came into your possession. Not only is this incredibly dangerous anyway, but now with Black on the loose, do you understand what could have possibly happened if you left this map lying around?"

A _map_? You see the shock that you feel mirrored in Harry's expression.

"Professor-"

"I can't let you have it back," Remus says, tossing the parchment behind him so that it lands on his desk, "You understand that, don't you?"

"Yes," Harry says quietly, "But, Professor, how do you _know_?"

You raise your eyebrows at Remus, and he meets your eyes momentarily as he sighs lightly. He looks back at Harry, his expression guarded.

"I knew the people who made it. Let's leave it at that, alright? Now run along, and never pull anything like that again."

Harry leaves in a hurry, and the second that the door closes behind him, you turn to Remus.

"Care to explain?"

"C'mere." He tilts his head towards his desk, so you follow him. He looks up at you as he lowers himself into his chair, hesitating before he taps his wand against the parchment.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," he says, and just like before, ink starts spreading across the parchment, only it's different than what was shown to you earlier.

"Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs..." you read under your breath, recognizing the names, "The Marauder's Map? Remus-"

He unfolds the parchment, and your eyes widen as you lean over his shoulder to take in what you're seeing. It's a map of Hogwarts: the castle itself, as well as the grounds, all of which is laid out in incredible detail. But not only that, there's also tiny dots moving on the map, each labeled with a name. Your eyes search the map, and sure enough, you find the two tiny dots that read _Remus Lupin_ and _Y/N Y/L/N_ , in the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. You're at a loss for words.

You find the one-eyed witch statue, and your earlier suspicions are confirmed. Behind the statue, there's a secret path, which leads all the way to Honeyduke's in Hogsmeade.

"This is fascinating," you say finally, looking at Remus, who's staring down at the map, a faraway look in his eyes. "You said you knew the people who made it. Who-"

"I did," Remus says abruptly, and you're a bit shocked at his sudden confession. He looks up at you, looking somewhat guilty. "My friends and I, when we were about fifteen."

 _His friends_. You feel your stomach turn when you realize what that means, your eyes searching the map and spotting all of the secret pathways into the school.

" _Merlin_ , Remus," you say, stepping back, "Does anyone else know?"

"It's not what you think," he says quickly, turning in his chair to face you, "Most of the pathways are blocked off, and they have been since the beginning of the year. I looked myself. One that's open, which is the one that I suspect Harry used, can only be accessed through Honeyduke's, so he wouldn't be able to use that one. _Trust_ me, Y/N."

You're still slightly horrified at the fact that Remus knew about this map all along, about Black helping him make the map, and the fact that he never told anyone that Black has known about the secret pathways this whole time.

And is there a possibility that there's more about Black that he's not telling you?

"What do the names mean?" you ask, indifferently.

"Just stupid names we made up because we thought we were cool," Remus answers, folding the map over so that the front is facing up. He runs his fingers over the ink that displays the four names. You feel some of your frustration subside as he looks back at you, a hint of very deep sadness in his eyes. Despite that, he offers you a small smile, and your heart aches.

"Can you guess who I was?"

You return his smile, your anger now completely gone. You feel guilty for once again doubting him, for jumping to conclusions. He wouldn't have gotten as upset with Harry as he did for having and using the map if he wasn't genuinely concerned for his safety.

"Moony?" you answer, walking back over to him and squeezing his shoulder as he leans over the map. When he looks back at you and nods, you can't help but laugh a bit.

"Very creative," you tease, stepping around to his front and lowering yourself to sit on his lap. He wraps his arms around you, leaning his head against you as the two of you look down at the map. "Though I suppose it's not the worst. Like, Wormtail? Who was the poor one of the group who had to be called that?"

"Er, Peter. Peter Pettigrew," Remus replies, somewhat hesitantly.

 _Peter Pettigrew_. You recognize the name: he was the one who stood up to Black years ago, but he was killed, and named a hero afterwards for his bravery. You remember hearing that all that they found left of him was a finger.

But thinking about it now, you realize just how horrible of a betrayal the whole thing with Black was, and you feel even worse. Two of Remus's best friends, killed by the third, leaving Remus all alone. You lean back into him, tracing the scars on his hand that rests on your thigh.

"So the other two were James Potter and Black, then, right?"

"Mhm. Prongs and Padfoot."

"What do they mean?"

Remus goes silent for a minute. "The names?"

"Yeah," you say, "I can't imagine that you'd call someone Wormtail without a reason. Like you were Moony for a reason, were you not?"

"I, er, can't quite remember, honestly," Remus says, his fingers tapping your thigh. His other hand rests on the desk, his long, slender fingers fiddling with a worn corner of the map. "It was so long ago, I think they just started calling me Moony and wanted nicknames of their own."

"Mm." You lean over, opening the map fully again to study it. "This really is incredible, though. You were _fifteen_ when you did this?" You watch as two dots labeled _Harry Potter_ and _Ron_ _Weasley_ move across the page towards Hagrid's cabin.

"About," he answers, wrapping his second arm around your waist and leaning forward to kiss your shoulder. You give up looking at the map, leaning back against Remus and closing your eyes. You open them again when an idea pops into your mind, and you turn around on Remus's lap so that you're sitting sideways and can face him.

"Will Black show up on the map if he tries to break into the school again?" you ask, "After all, if it really shows everyone who's on the grounds, why would he _not_ show up?"

Remus's face pales slightly. "I mean, I suppose. I'll certainly keep an eye out."

A terrible thought flits into your head, based off his hesitation: _what if he doesn't want Black to be caught?_ But you immediately push it away. Why _wouldn't_ he?

You have a newfound hope. With this map, and with Remus - and you - keeping an eye on it, there's no way that Black will be able to break into the school again without being seen. 

You mentally thank fifteen-year-old Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs for creating such a useful device.


End file.
